Antithesis
by LyricalKris
Summary: If being an Ice Princess was the best way to keep everyone at arms length, Rosalie was the queen of that universe. So what was it about Edward Cullen - arrogant prick personified - that got under her skin?
1. Everyone Can Say What They Want

**Antithesis Chapter 1: Everyone Can Say What They Want To Say**

**Dedication: To jadedandboring. Let there be no doubt that I adore you and all you do for me. I am writing a pairing that makes me a little nauseous. You are an incredible woman and a wonderful friend. I love you.**

"_**An' I don't give a damn**__**  
><strong>__**'Bout my reputation**__**  
><strong>__**The world's in trouble**__**  
><strong>__**There's no communication**__**  
><strong>__**An' everyone can say**__**  
><strong>__**What they want to say**__**  
><strong>__**It never gets better anyway**__**  
><strong>__**So why should I care**__**  
><strong>__**'Bout a bad reputation anyway,"**_

_**~Bad Reputation, Joan Jett and the Blackhearts**_

"Tell me again why I'm here?" Edward Cullen grumbled, looking over at his best friend and roommate, Jasper Whitlock.

Jasper gave him a somewhat sardonic look and wordlessly set the drink he'd just retrieved from the bar in front of the other man's face. Edward arched an eyebrow. Scotch on the rocks, and not the cheap stuff either.

Well, Jasper sure knew how to make him feel better.

Edward took a long drink and tried to relax. It wasn't so much that he was on edge, he was just generally irritated. Many found bars and clubs relaxing or exciting, but that wasn't the case for him. No, Edward had too many statistics running through his head. He volunteered often at the rape crisis hotline, and could count on the fingers and toes of every person in the club how many times the wavering voice on the other end of the phone started their tale with, "I was at this bar..."

Date rape statistics notwithstanding, Edward simply didn't jive with the concept behind clubs. He wasn't much for the frantically-paced dancing, and he certainly couldn't fathom picking up a woman here. Seriously, where was the logic in approaching a person based on the one thing in you had in common being that you depended on a social lubricant to-

"Edward, for chrissakes. I can hear the wheels in your head spinning from here," Jasper complained, rolling his eyes. "Stop analyzing all the people who, heaven forbid, have a good time surrounded by really loud music and copious quantities of alcohol." He shifted in his seat, looking piqued. "No one's asking you to hit on anyone."

The blond-haired man shook his head mournfully. "You know what the sad thing is? You wouldn't even have to _try _to pick up any one of these ladies." Grinning at his friend, Jasper leaned over, pinching Edward's cheek. "Too g'damned pretty for your own good, that's what you are."

Edward slapped Jasper's hand away. "You're the one who wanted me to come out here," he reminded mildly.

"So I did," Jasper conceded. "All right, let's conduct a social experiment." He craned his neck, looking around the place with an effortless air of nonchalance. "How about a bet? I bet you can charm the hell out of that leggy blonde over there." Before Edward could protest, he raised his free hand in a placating motion. "Edward, I'm not telling you to try to get into her pants. I'm just talking about getting through a conversation without getting the brush-off most of these other pricks are going to get tonight."

Arching an eyebrow, Edward rolled his head as if he had a neck ache, looking at the blonde Jasper had indicated. Tall and slim, no one could deny that she was drop-dead gorgeous. He'd have had no trouble believing she was a model. Of course, Edward was not without his biases. In his experience extraordinarily beautiful women tended to be spoiled - an attribute he utterly deplored. "Blonds are not at all my type, but you know that."

Jasper snorted. "No one's your type, you persnickety asshole. Again, you're not trying to get her into bed. It's a bet, Einstein. The object is to get her not to ignore you." His eyes roamed over to where the blonde stood and lingered.

Edward watched his friend closely, his eyes narrowing as Jasper's lips pursed in a small, private smile. Edward chanced another look and noticed that the blonde had a shorter, pretty friend with hair as black as the devil's soul. He had to bite the inside of his cheek to keep from laughing. "What you mean is that you have your eye on the little one, and you want me to run interference on her Amazonian friend."

The expression on his friend's face said it all. Then Edward focused, noticing a tattoo on the raven-haired woman's exposed arm. Even from his vantage point, across the room, he could see it was a snake tattoo, drawn as if wrapped around her upper, right arm. Funny... in recent months, Jasper had spoken more than once of the girl who delivered sandwiches to his office - a short, beautiful girl with a wicked sense of humor and a snake tattoo that absolutely drove him wild.

Leaning forward with both arms on the table, Edward looked at Jasper straight on. "Tell me you're not stalking this chick."

"Jesus," Jasper spat, glaring at the other man. "You know better than that. I like this club. I came here a couple weeks ago with Peter and Charlotte and again last week." He took a quick sip of his drink, his glare fading away to a guilty grimace. "Is it my fault that she happened to be here both times?"

Running a hand over his eyes, Edward filled in the blanks for himself. Jasper was right, he was no stalker. It was probably the truth that he'd run into the girl when he was out with Peter and Charlotte, but a blissfully married couple did not a good wingman make. Hence why he'd been trying to get Edward here.

And really, if Jasper was so enamored with the girl that he'd gone to even these lengths, the least Edward could do was distract the friend for a few minutes. With a long suffering sigh, he put his hand up, signaling a waitress. "Fine, Whitlock. Have it your way. Consider my A-game officially brought."

Edward tapped a finger against his chin, thinking. He looked up at the waitress and tilted his head in the direction of the bar. "See the two women over there at the bar? The polar opposites?"

The waitress looked and nodded. They stood out.

"To the tall one, a Cosmo courtesy of me. And to the vertically challenged but equally lovely one..." he looked at Jasper, waiting for him to fill in the blanks.

Jasper smirked. "Whiskey extra sour," he said decisively.

Edward handed over payment along with a generous tip and waited. A few minutes later their drinks were delivered. The waitress pointed at them, and Edward had to stop himself from rolling his eyes, instead putting on his most charming smile as he gave the girls a short wave.

The two women conferred, the raven-haired one gesticulating at the much calmer blonde. They were arguing. It was clear the blonde won as she began striding in their direction, the smaller one trailing cautiously after her.

Great. Edward tried to keep the exasperated expression off his face. If Jasper had just struck out with the object of his affections, he certainly didn't want to be in the position of having to play nice to the Amazon. This was one of the hundreds of reasons why he hated this game.

"Hi there," the blonde said, coming over to their table and flashing a sweet smile that could have easily lit the room. Edward tilted his head slightly, distracted by an observation that flitted through his mind. This woman was Aphrodite personified - he would have to be blind not to acknowledge this. She had a body any woman in this club would have wished for, but unlike most of the others, she wasn't flaunting what she had so much as accentuating it. Her ample breasts were not spilling out of her top. In fact, she was showing only a tasteful amount of skin at her arms and her neck. "Which one of you fine gentleman ordered the Cosmo?"

"Uh, that would be this guy," Jasper used his thumb to point at Edward. "No one ever accused me of being a gentleman." His eyes went behind her to where her friend stood and he smiled.

Reminding himself that Jasper was his best friend and he owed him much, Edward slipped back into the character he was playing. "I'm-" he began but was cut off by the splash of sticky pink that drenched his face. "What the fuck!" he sputtered.

"Rosalie," the small one protested, her voice more exasperated than surprised.

Still smiling like a Miss America pageant contestant, Rose set her now empty glass on the table and crossed her arms. "Let me tell you in how many different ways this drink is a colossally bad idea. First off, the whole concept of buying a girl a drink is archaic and demeaning. Really? You think my affections can or should be bought with a $7 well drink? Secondly, nice stereotype asshole. Of course, a pretty pink cosmo because I'm a little girl who can't handle real liquor?" She picked up his scotch on the rocks and shot it back in one gulp without flinching.

When she set his glass down, the smile was gone. She was full on glaring. The woman had a bitch face that made his testicles want to crawl back up into his body. "For the record, I like whiskey. Gentleman Jack if they have it. Beam Black if they don't. And last, if you were going to go the cliche 'buy the girl a drink' route you could have at least gone for the good stuff instead of just something straight off the rail, you tactless prick. So good job, Ace. Not only did you fail to pick me up but you've insulted me. Threefold."

She turned away, about to make an epic exit when she stopped, looking thoughtful as she glanced back at him again. "By the by, a Cosmo was created by the gay community of Provincetown, Massachusetts. Is that a coincidence?"

This time she made it about five steps away before Edward called out to her. "Oh, uh...Princess?"

At his side, Jasper's eyes went wide - impressive, as he'd already been gaping at the tough girl display - and he leaned over to hiss, "Dude. You're gonna get slapped..."

It was a good possibility. As it was, the woman's back went stiff at his words. Slowly, she walked back to him, her eyes glaring and dangerous. "You are just all kinds of stupid, aren't you?"

Affecting an unconcerned air, Edward put his hands behind his head and propped his feet up on the chair in front of him. "Mission accomplished, Briar Rose." From the way her nose twitched at the nickname, Edward could tell it annoyed her. He tried to keep the smug smile off his face. "It got you over here, didn't it?"

The woman just blinked at him. Edward took that as a sign he should continue. "Now, listen closely because I'm only going to say this once." He looked at her in all seriousness. "I'm sorry. I certainly didn't mean to offend you." He signaled the waitress. "I took a chance because, as luck would have it, the Cosmo is _my_ drink of choice." He looked over at Jasper. "My dirty little secret," he acknowledged, and his best friend grinned. "But I wasn't the only one who ordered a drink." He looked at the raven-haired woman and smiled. "What's the word, my fair lady? Was my comrade's choice in beverage insulting?"

With a wicked grin, the shorter woman raised her glass to her lips. Her tongue darted out and she licked the sugar off the rim, her eyes on Jasper the whole time. Then she took a long drink. "Just my flavor."

Leaning forward, Jasper raised his glass to her and took a drink of his own.

The waitress appeared then, looking wary. Edward looked first at Rose. "For clarification, this is to apologize for any offense I committed, not any attempt to woo you or anything like that," he said with a wink before looking up at the waitress. "I," he emphasized, "will have a Cosmo if you please. Two more whiskey sours for my friends over here and for this lady," he nodded at Rose, "Gentleman Jack. Straight up."

As the waitress left to retrieve their drinks, Edward looked back to the leggy blonde. He pushed the spare chair in front of him back with his foot. "What do you say, Princess? Hows about we start over?"

**~0~**

Rosalie was irritated.

She was pissed off that her best friend, Alice, was obviously enjoying her time with the scruffy blond man. Jasper. What kind of a name was that? Who named their child after a stone, after all? But Jasper, beyond having a quick tongue and a fucking gorgeous smile, was - despite his earlier claim - quite a gentleman. Save for offering her a napkin, he hadn't tried to get handsy at all with Alice, leaving Rosalie no window to drag her friend out of the club for her own protection.

She was annoyed because if she was stuck with Jasper Whitlock, then she was also stuck with Edward Cullen. The man was attractive, she wasn't going to even try to deny that. She had the strangest urge to touch his hair, despite the fact it was entirely possible that it stood on end like that because it was dirty. He was charming if you could overlook the cocky way his lips quirked when she snickered at something clever he'd said.

But mainly Rosalie was irritated at herself - because no matter how many times she did that precocious little hair toss, or stretched, affording him a fantastic view of her body, Edward never looked anywhere but her eyes, and he seemed...apathetic to her comely charms. As much as it annoyed her when anyone - male or female - mooned over her, she was quickly discovering that the opposite was doubly true.

"So," Edward began, looking over at her after Alice and Jasper excused themselves for a dance, "what do you do?"

"I kick ass and take names," Rosalie said bluntly, skewering an olive out of Alice's abandoned drink – she'd moved on to martini's at that point.

"I'm sure you do," Edward said, his voice annoyingly patronizing. "In what arena, I mean."

Rosalie resisted the urge to growl at him. "I know what you meant. That's literally my job - kicking ass and taking names. I teach kickboxing."

Edward's eyebrows shot up, and Rosalie couldn't keep the pleased expression off her face. She thoroughly enjoyed the fact that she could have men two and three times her size on the ground sobbing. He nodded approvingly. "I like a lady who can take care of herself," Edward said. He grinned. "It makes my job easier."

"Jesus, you're an asshole," Rosalie sneered, abruptly furious with the man in front of her. "You're one of those pricks who thinks women are his responsibility." In her heart of hearts, Rosalie knew she was overreacting. Edward, just making harmless small talk, had hit upon a sore spot on her psyche.

"Easy, Princess. It's just a refreshing surprise, that's all. Pardon my stereotype but you have to admit that a lot of girls who look like you wouldn't know how to defend themselves if their lives depended on it.

"God. I am so out of here," Rosalie spat, standing and scanning the room to figure out where Alice went.

When a restraining hand wrapped around her wrist she recoiled, yanking her hand back, "Get the fuck off of me," she snarled, pushing him backward.

They glared at each other for a moment, and Edward sighed, his hands up as he sat back. "Princess, will you chill out a second and listen to me? Look, I'm not going to turn up the charm," he said with a huff. "I find all that shit a little more than ridiculous anyway, so let me be straightforward with you."

Wrapping her arms around herself, Rosalie nodded. "Please."

"I'm not interested in you," Edward said bluntly.

Rosalie had to try to keep her grimace off her face. There was no reason that fact should sting so much.

Holding up a hand, Edward began to tick off on his fingers. "You're loud. You're bossy. You're blond. All of these things add up to not my type. I don't want to get in your pants – it seems like more trouble than it's worth considering they are painted on your ass." He had noticed. Rosalie felt smug until he smirked at her. "Not enough room for me to maneuver if you get what I'm saying."

She made a face at him, moderately disgusted... especially at the fact she wanted to smile. "Obviously any charm you had you got on sale."

"The point, Princess, of all this," he gestured between the two of them, "is not what I want. It's what he wants," he nodded at his friend and Alice out on the dance floor. Then his voice got a little lower, unerringly earnest. "I know you don't know him, but he's a little gaga over your friend. I know," he said with a laugh, "he likes to talk like he has this rough exterior but the truth of the matter is that if he and she hit it off, he will be, hands down, the sweetest guy you've ever met. So you stay here, say whatever you want to me, and let them see if they spark. I will continue to drink pink," he raised his Cosmo with a sardonic grin, "if it's any consolation."

At that Rosalie couldn't stop the upward quirk of her lips. She sat again. "One condition."

Edward raised an eyebrow. "Only one?"

In one smooth motion, she raised a foot, resting it on his chair between his legs so the long heel was pointed right at his good parts. "You call me Princess again and those girly drinks are going to be a lot more appropriate given that you will be without your testicles."

To her utter irritation he had the nerve to laugh, not looking nearly as nervous as she would have liked. "Fair enough, Rosalie."

Sighing in defeat - this man was obviously unflappable - Rosalie dropped her foot, leaning resignedly back in her chair. Her anger cooled, and she thought over their conversation. "You care about him a lot, don't you?" she observed.

"Jasper?" Edward clarified. Rosalie nodded. "Yes, he's important to me."

Edward went on to tell her how they'd met in college. He'd been working toward a Master of Science in Sports Science, and Jasper was on the UDub football team.

Rosalie snorted. "So your friendship was built over foot massages?"

"Ankle mostly," Edward returned, grinning. "And don't knock it." He leaned across the table, waggling his eyebrows in a way that was entirely too sexy for Rosalie's own good. "I give the best massages you'll ever experience, I guarantee you that."

A thrill shot through Rosalie's body. She was hyper-aware of the way her tits suddenly began to strain against the material of her bra. _Traitor body_.

Somehow they managed not to kill each other before Alice and Jasper came back to the table. Shortly thereafter, the boys walked the girls to a waiting cab.

Edward opened Rosalie's door for her, bowing grandly - and a little drunkenly - as he did so. "M'lady," he said, somewhat sarcastically, and she couldn't help the smile that pulled at the edges of her mouth.

As she stepped to the side of the car, Rosalie felt a rush of heat between her and the green-eyed man. She swayed on her feet, imagining what her body would feel like pressed against the hard lines of his. She shook her head slightly, trying to rid herself of the vision.

Acting on impulse, Rosalie leaned over the door, her lips at his neck. She felt smugly satisfied when he gasped and felt emboldened enough that her tongue darted out. She licked a line up below his chin and hummed in pleasure, tasting remnants of the sweet-sour of the alcohol she'd splashed on him earlier that evening . "Mmmm." Backing up, she looked him straight in the eye, trying not to smirk at his shocked expression. "You know," she said, smacking her lips, "Cosmo doesn't taste half bad after all." She flashed him her sweetest smile before ducking into the car, glad to be out of the light because she felt her cheeks begin to flame.

Outside the car, Edward barked out a short laugh. He peered inside, offering her a devastatingly handsome grin. "Goodnight, Briar Rose," he said before he shut the door.

The instant the cab pulled away from the club, Alice let out a happy squeal. She sighed in contentment, her head lolling slightly on the seat. "Oh, my god, Rose. I think I'm in love."

Rosalie had to smile. Maybe Alice was being a little ridiculous, but it was nice to see her so happy.

Abruptly, Alice's eyes went wide and she looked over at Rosalie, a flash of intuition crossing her face. "Wait... did something happen between you and Edward?"

Rosalie turned, staring out the window to hide her grimace. She'd hoped that Alice hadn't caught her spontaneous tongue bath. She scoffed, affecting a derisive tone. "Edward is an asshole."

She was relieved when Alice didn't press the issue.

**A/N: Thank you so much to TwilightMundi for beta work. This is going to be a short story. Perhaps 5 chapters. I'm not putting it on a posting schedule because I'm writing when it strikes me. **

**Thanks so much for reading!**


	2. House of Cards

**Chapter 2: House of Cards  
><strong>**  
>Dedication: To jadedandboring... the reason I'm writing Roseward...and that I'm about to quote TAYLOR FUCKING SWIFT. I'm beginning to think our relationship is unhealthy.<strong>

_**"The way you move is like a full on rainstorm**_  
><em><strong>And I'm a house of cards<strong>_  
><em><strong>You say my name for the first time, baby, and I<strong>_  
><em><strong>Fall in love in an empty bar<strong>_  
><em><strong>And you stood there in front of me just<strong>_  
><em><strong>Close enough to touch<strong>_  
><em><strong>Close enough to hope you couldn't see<strong>_  
><em><strong>What I was thinking of<strong>_,"  
><strong><br>~Sparks Fly, Taylor Swift**

"Edward, come on. Do me a solid," Jasper begged for the umpteenth time that hour.

Growling, Edward set down his beer and glared at his best friend. "For the life of me, I can't figure out why this is so important to you, man."

Jasper groaned. "This girl... this girl has me ... verklempt."

Edward pressed his lips into a thin line, trying not to laugh at his friend. "I don't think that word means what you think it means," he said flatly. He considered for a moment. "I mean, it works... but only very vaguely."

"Oh, Christ. Decide whether you're an English teacher or an athlete, please," Jasper groused.

"I'm not an athlete. And I think that's...what, Yiddish?" Edward tapped his chin, pretending to think.

"You work with athletes. They get their dumb athlete germs all over you. Anyway, this is all beside the point, jackass," Jasper said dryly, throwing a Frito at Edward's head.

"The girl has you by the short and curlies. Continue," Edward said, waving his hand.

The blond man grimaced. "Long story real short? Alice is Rosalie's only friend."

"Gee, I wonder why," Edward drawled sarcastically.

Jasper glared warningly. "Alice doesn't want to do the whole thing where she gets into a relationship and ditches her friends."

"I'm missing what this has to do with me," Edward said impatiently.

"Alice has this vision in her head of a Friends type relationship. You know, like all of us being one big, happy group? She likes you a lot."

"And I like her," Edward said honestly.

"Would it kill you to give Rose a chance?"

Edward's irritation flared. He and Rose had been thrown together a number of times in the two months Jasper and Alice had been dating. It hadn't gone well. Ever. "Jasper, because you were - apparently - too busy looking at your girlfriend's ass - which I'll admit, is quite nice - let me summarize each and every interaction I've had with that woman."

He put up both of his hands. He faced his right hand toward his left and craned his left hand around, looking anywhere but his right. "Hello again, Rosalie," he said with his right hand. He remained silent for a moment as he let his left hand peer around. "Have you noticed the price of bread has dropped?" his right hand asked. His left hand froze, then turned sharply toward the right. "Drop dead, prick!" he shouted in a shrill voice, fiercely attacking his right hand with his left. He looked up at Jasper, holding his palms out.

His friend's answer stare could only be described as withering. "Rosalie takes some getting used to, but she's really not that bad. Funny even, in that sarcastic kind of way. She's just a little ... spiky."

"She hates me, Jasper. I have no idea what I did to her, but she hates me for it all the same." Edward was unconcerned about this fact.

Jasper snorted. "See, I think you're full of shit."

"About what?" Edward asked, eyebrow arched.

"See, I know you. When you think someone isn't worth your time, you ignore them completely." He tilted his head, smiling at Edward with a mock curious grin. "So tell me, dear Edward. How bad could Rosalie be if you care about her enough to argue with her?"

Edward narrowed his eyes, glaring at his best friend. "Jasper, seeing arguing as a sign of attraction is a bit of a stretch."

Jasper's answering smile was smug. "Edward," he said sweetly, "I didn't say anything about attraction."

Grumbling, Edward hunkered down further in his seat, displaying an uncharacteristic slouch. "Have it your way. To answer your original question, yes, I will cancel all my plans so we can have an ever important movie night. I didn't realize you being whipped would be this annoying for me."

**~0~**

Rosalie was torn between being entirely amused and feeling vaguely ill by the intense game of tonsil hockey that was going on only a short distance across the room from her.

The evening had started off well enough. Jasper and Alice were adorable together and fun to watch when they weren't trying to have sex with their clothes on. They'd managed to make it through dinner and the first quarter of the movie without getting gross. Well, even she could admit that Jasper was a stunningly attractive man. She supposed it was only understandable that Alice couldn't go for more than a half an hour without touching some intimate part of him.

"Well, I tried my best."

Quirking an eyebrow, Rosalie turned slightly to look at Edward. It seemed the movie was being completely ignored by all in the room. Alice and Jasper, on the La-Z-Boy, were too busy groping each other. Apparently, their Rated R peep show was a train wreck situation - neither Rosalie nor Edward, sitting on opposite ends of the couch, could seem to look away.

"I picked _Mr. and Mrs. Smith_ because Jasper has a thing for Angelina Jolie kicking people's asses but I forgot about the dominatrix outfit. Just a little bit too much stimuli for the poor boy," he said, his voice regretful.

Rosalie snickered. "Not for nothing but isn't it against the guy code to know what rocks your best guy friend's boat? Is there something you need to tell me because I have an obligation to Alice."

A warmth blossomed in the pit of her stomach, spreading through her chest and tingling at the tips of her fingers when he grinned at her. Her eyes dropped down to the bowl of popcorn in her hands, and she reflected that she'd probably had too much wine - it was making her face hot. She rubbed at her shoulder absently. "It's a little blasphemous if you ask me," she said, finding it easier to look back at the couple than at Edward. "You do not make out to the tune of Brad and Angelina."

Edward scoffed. "I wouldn't risk it, personally. They're like talismans for fertility."

"Oh, you poor boy," she snickered. "You can't knock a girl up with your mouth."

Looking at her, Edward winked. "Maybe I'm just that talented."

Nerves followed the thrill that rushed through her then, and Rosalie again found herself absently rubbing her shoulder and avoiding his gaze. She felt the familiar spark of irritation. They'd been getting along okay for a change. Was he going to ruin it by flirting? Why the fuck men had such one track minds was beyond her.

But then, she was probably just overreacting. Edward had never tried to get her into bed, after all.

"Hey, why don't we move this party to my bedroom?" Edward suggested.

"Excuse me?"

Edward rolled his eyes. "Relax. I mean, let's give them some privacy. If they're going to defile the La-Z-Boy, I don't want to be here to see it. My room is plenty big enough for the both of us. We can finish watching the movie."

Reluctantly, Rosalie agreed. She tried to tell herself that her fear was irrational. It was a little awkward to be in a boy's bedroom for the first time no matter the age or the circumstance. It made her nervous, and her body was automatically on alert, waiting for Edward to try something. It was stupid given that Edward, despite the fact he was a complete prick, was a consummate gentleman, and, if worse came to worse, she knew how to defend herself and Alice and Jasper were just one scream away...

Hands on her shoulders made Rosalie recoil so quickly she actually stood. "What the fuck do you think you're doing?" she hissed.

He looked perplexed. "Your shoulder is hurting," he said as if this should explain everything.

"What?"

"You're in pain. I've been watching you rub it all night. I do this for a living. Let me help you," he said, reaching out with his hands again.

"I don't need your help," she snarled, her mouth working more on instinct and nerves still.

His eyebrows furrowed, and he looked like he was going to snap right back at her, but something stopped him. "Alright," he said slowly. "No touchy-touchy. I get it." He scooted back on the bed until he was propped up against the headboard, his hands on his lap.

She hated the look he gave her then, the knowing look. It was the look she saw when she gave too much of her fear away. It made her skin crawl, feeling dirty and marked... like he knew. And fuck that. She wasn't going to be afraid. She wasn't going to let fear control her. Taking a deep breath, she sat back down on the bed. "Fuck it. Do it," she commanded before she could lose her nerve. "Please," she added as an afterthought.

At first he didn't move, but then he slowly crawled over the bed toward her. Even though she was expecting it, Rosalie couldn't help but give a little start when his hands touched her neck. She closed her eyes, breathing in through her nose as she tried to relax.

There was something unbelievably sensual about the way he touched her. He swept her hair off one shoulder and onto the other. His fingers began at her neck, firm but gentle as he followed the line from her hairline to her shoulder. "I'm glad you let me help," he said, his voice a rumble near her ear that sent shivers down her spine. "Even people with less physically demanding jobs can injure themselves quite severely without knowing it." As he spoke he began to work her muscles with his long, strong fingers. Rosalie's breath caught. It was painful but it was exquisite, his ministrations working out kinks deep beneath her skin.

"Oh, my God," Rosalie murmured, her voice a moan.

"Feels better, right?" he asked, his fingers still working.

"Yes. That feels incredible," she admitted.

"It's not a bad idea, in your line of work, to invest in a deep tissue massage on a regular basis. It will be more cost effective than ending up needing rehab," he continued. He brushed his hand along her arm, and Rosalie tensed briefly as his fingers grasped hers. She relaxed again when he simply drew her arm out. "Hear this?" he asked, apparently oblivious to her momentary distress as he bent her arm back slightly.

"The click? That happens sometimes when I'm stretching," she answered.

"It shouldn't." He began to explain the different groups of muscles and bones and how they worked together. It was all over Rosalie's head, but she was enjoying the smooth cadence of his voice. It was almost hypnotizing – his melodic voice combined with the perfect pain that left her breathless for whole seconds before it released, leaving her arm feeling better than she could remember it being.

Maybe it was that she was feeling extremely relaxed, maybe it was that her body naturally strained toward the rumble of his voice resonating in his chest. All Rosalie knew was that suddenly she was leaning with her back against Edward's front and his lips were brushing her hair near her ear, his breath hot on her exposed skin.

Abruptly, Rosalie pulled away slightly. Her chest rose and fell rapidly, and her heart beat a rapid tattoo that echoed between her ears. Edward's hands paused, his breath ragged for a moment before he cleared his throat and started massaging again as if nothing had happened.

Fury colored Rosalie's vision and she couldn't concentrate on his words. She didn't know what made her more pissed off: the fact that it felt suspiciously like he was trying to seduce her or the fact that he was able to stop so quickly.

"Don't take this the wrong way. I taught Jasper a variation of this. The sensual massage is a real lady killer but it also restores healthy bloodflow to the body," Edward explained as he began the next part of the massage. The problem was that Rosalie wasn't entirely paying attention. She only heard keywords, 'sensual' and 'lady killer' among them.

She twisted out of Edward's grip. "Get your hands off me," she yelled.

He looked completely flabbergasted for a moment before he looked exasperated. "Would you keep it down?" he admonished.

"I'm sure you'd like that," she hissed, putting more space between them.

"Look, I don't know what your problem is-" he started, but Rosalie cut him off.

"My problem is you putting your hands all over me!"

He gaped at her. "What are you… Jesus Christ, I was trying to help you. You said it was okay, remember?"

"I said it was okay to work out the kink in my shoulder. You weren't touching my shoulder. You were… running your hands down my back and then-" This time it was him who cut her off.

"I explained to you what I was doing as I was doing it. It's not my fault if you were too busy moaning to hear it," Edward retorted, his face a mask of fury. "Look, will you be quiet? I'm not going to touch you again, and if you keep on yelling like that Alice and Jasper –"

"What's going on in here?" The door swung open revealing Alice with her hands on her hips and a concerned looking Jasper behind her.

"We're leaving," Rosalie said, moving to her friend. "Let's go."

"Oh, for fucks sakes," Edward growled. "Are you really that much of a self-centered bitch? If you don't like me, that's fine, but Alice was obviously having a good time." That much was readily apparent. Both Alice and Jasper were completely disheveled: hair wild and clothes rumpled. "She's your friend. Can't you calm down for a few minutes and let her be happy?"

Rose opened her mouth to answer but couldn't. Her heart twisted and she couldn't have felt more wounded if he'd struck her physically.

"You know what? Why don't you go?" Edward suggested, his arms crossed as he glared at her. "Jasper and I are more than capable of driving Alice home."

Alice sighed heavily. "No, it's fine. Come on, Rose."

"Alice… you can stay…" she started, but Alice lifted a hand to stop her.

"You," she said, pointing at Edward with a fierce expression. "I like you, but you do not get to be a prick to my friend."

"I wasn't-" Edward began to protest but apparently thought better of it. Instead, his mouth snapped shut with an audible click and he pushed past Alice and Jasper, storming out of his own room.

Shaking her head slightly, Alice turned to Jasper, wrapping her arms around his neck and pulling him down to her. They kissed quickly and sweetly. "I'm sorry," Alice said softly, making Rosalie feel like more a heel that she had to apologize. Maybe she had over reacted.

"No problem," Jasper said amiably, holding her hand with a beautiful tenderness. "Chicks before dicks. I get it," he joked, and Alice laughed.

When Jasper looked over at Rosalie, his eyes hardened slightly. "Speaking of which – you and I both know that Edward can be an asshole, but he's not _that_ bad. Would it kill you to cut him some slack?"

**~0~**

Rosalie knew that Edward was alone in the house Friday evening. She knew this because Alice told her she and Jasper had a date that night. Since Alice had also canceled their customary Saturday brunch, Rosalie could bet that Jasper would be with Alice all night.

So why Rosalie suddenly decided she needed to get back the sweater she'd left behind last weekend, she didn't know. She could have had Alice retrieve it for her after all.

Instead, Rosalie found herself pulling up to the Cullen-Whitlock household. She approached the door slowly, feeling irritated and nervous ... and irritated that she was nervous. It took her a moment to realize she could hear music coming from inside the house. A smile played at her lips as she recognized the work of Debussy on piano... a very lovely piano at that.

Sighing to herself, Rosalie rang the doorbell. She was shocked when the piano music cut off. Edward wasn't listening to music... he was playing it.

As he opened the door, a surprised and then wary expression crossed Edward's features before he settled on curiosity. "Alice isn't here," he said flatly, leaning on the door jamb with his arms crossed over his chest.

Rosalie's irritation was back in force. She narrowed her eyes at the arrogant bastard. "I know that. I need my sweater."

He blinked, obviously not knowing what she was talking about.

"My swea-ter?" Rosalie spoke as if Edward were especially slow. "I left it here last week?"

"Right, right, when you had to flee from the big, bad bully," Edward smirked, but he stepped aside to let her in. "I haven't seen it," he said as he walked off toward a room beyond the living room that Rosalie hadn't seen before. "You're welcome to look around."

Aggravated at his constant rudeness, Rosalie slammed the front door as she entered the house. She heard that chuckle she absolutely loathed before he started playing again. Grumbling to herself, Rosalie began searching for her sweater.

It wasn't in the living room or Edward's room. Even though Edward's room was impeccably neat, Rosalie still justified a little snooping - all in the name of finding her missing sweater, of course.

His shelves were lined with books. Rosalie ran her hands over them, admittedly surprised by the variety of titles. She sighed, leaning her head against the wall and wondering why she cared. Shaking off that thought, she headed back into the hallway.

Following the music, Rosalie made her way to the piano room. It was a wide, open room that spanned the back of the house, like it must have once been a patio. Wise decision... what good was an outdoor patio when it rained so damn much in Seattle? The piano - a gorgeous, black baby grand - was set into one corner so that the player was facing the rest of the room.

Edward didn't look up as she entered the room. His eyes remained on the sheet of music in front of him. "Any luck?" he asked amiably, his fingers continuing to move.

"No. You really didn't see a woman's sweater? Or are you just so used to women being in your room that you didn't know whose it was?" Rosalie snarked.

That got his attention, though he only looked up long enough to roll his eyes at her. "Ah, I'm a manwhore today. Well, it's good to know that you've got more in your repertoire than just asshole." He didn't even stop playing to snap at her. Rosalie fought a grimace.

She grumbled to herself but then let it go. "What's that you're playing, anyway? I've never heard it before."

"That's because I wrote it," Edward responded mildly.

Rosalie was impressed. She couldn't help it. "It's... it's honestly beautiful."

Edward looked up again and he smiled, genuinely. "Thank you."

Walking around the piano, Rosalie peered over his shoulder at the music, tracing a finger over the handwritten notes. "I always wished I could compose music. Anytime I tried, though... it just ended up being a facsimile of something already written."

Finishing his song, Edward looked up at her with a skeptical expression. "You play?"

"I used to," Rosalie admitted. "It's been a while." She waited for him to make the inevitable wisecrack, already feeling defensive. Just because she was a good looking woman didn't mean she wasn't cultured. She was actually a gifted pianist.

Instead he only looked contemplative for a moment before he rifled through his music. He pulled out a familiar piece, a duet, and scooted over on the bench. "Well, let's see if you still have what it takes," he challenged.

If he had asked her to play any other way she would have told him to fuck off. As it was her heart began to speed. There was no denying that Edward was talented, and she hadn't been lying - it had been a while since she'd even touched a piano. The last thing she wanted was to look like a fool in front of this man. But the way he'd said it...

Well, she was nothing if not competitive. She sat, primly and carefully, on the bench. The piece he'd chosen was simple enough. She held herself poised straight as she put her fingers on the right keys.

Edward grinned lopsidedly before he copied her stance and he began to play.

Rosalie joined in and felt the smile creep up on her as her tension eased. She'd forgotten what it felt like when her fingers danced across the ivories and beautiful noise came out. She'd forgotten how the rest of the world could slide away as she played.

Rosalie would have thought it would be irritating to play a duet. Normally, she preferred playing alone because she knew she was good - she didn't trust another person to play as well as she could - but Edward was flawless. Out of the corner of her eye, she could see his long fingers were graceful as they worked over the keys. She played - the harmony to his melody - and all the negative energy that existed between them fell away, lost as they were in the music. The strains were soft and delicate as the piece they played was a tender love song. How could they be angry at each other when they were immersed in something that spoke wordlessly of the beautiful feelings that could exist between two people?

Looking over her shoulder, she found Edward looking over his at her. He was smiling, his face for once at ease as he looked on her. The melody he played beckoned her, teasing her with the sweetness she could have if only she followed it. Her body swayed. Her head tilted at the same time his did, and as his fingers played the last notes of the song, they kissed.

The vibration of the echo of the piano music gave way to the sound of their lips moving together. She gave a little mewl and he sighed, the noises coming together in an almost melodic tandem - as if they were still making beautiful music together.

His hands cupping either side of her face was as effective as throwing ice cold water over the whole scene. Rosalie gasped wildly and pushed back, away from him. She stood so quickly that she bumped her leg on the edge of the piano.

"What-" Edward began, and then ducked, his hand shooting out to catch her wrist as she tried to slap him. His eyes narrowed.

"Let go of me. Let go!" Rosalie demanded, jerking her arm out of his grip. The instant she was free she made a beeline for the door, cursing herself. It wasn't him she was angry at - some rational part of her knew it, but that knowledge did nothing to calm the rage boiling in her veins.

Her heart threatened to beat straight out of her chest when she heard his quick footsteps catching up to her. She was almost at the door - her hand on the knob - when he leaned into her bubble. He put his hand on the door, preventing her from opening it. Rosalie looked down on her feet, feeling his livid glare on her.

For a few moments there was only the sound of their quick breathing, both of them trying to calm down. Feeling cornered and trapped, it was all Rosalie could do not to kick him in the balls. She knew he didn't deserve it.

"I don't hit women," he said flatly. "But I also expect them not to hit me, especially when I didn't do anything wrong." Straightening so he wasn't towering over her, Edward leaned with his back against the door. "So I'm confused. You are all over the map with me, and I don't like playing games where I don't know the rules."

"The rules are you keep your hands to yourself, you fucking pig," she seethed.

"Are you high? Are you on drugs right now? Because honestly, I don't know how else to explain your fucking insanity," Edward bellowed. He stopped, took a deep breath, and when he spoke again he was quite a bit calmer. "I have news for you: aside from sending you that drink at the club - which we established was done for Jasper's sake, not mine - I have never come on to you."

"Oh, come off it," Rosalie scoffed.

"You came over here, remember? And last week, it was Jasper who invited you, not me. And I don't know if you noticed, but-" Edward was cut off when Rosalie flew forward. Whatever he was going to say melted into a surprised noise that was muffled when she put her mouth to his. She kissed him hard, not knowing if she wanted to shut him up for good or if she simply wanted to be closer to him.

Edward froze and then groaned, his arms snaking around her. He switched their positions so she was pressed against the wall, his body pressing into hers and pulling her closer at the same time. His lips matched her frantic pace.

When their kiss broke they were both breathing raggedly, chests heaving in tandem as they stared at each other. Rosalie felt at once foolish and wanton. She wanted him, but she didn't want to want him. It was like being at war with herself and the battle she fought internally, she saw reflected in his emerald eyes.

He leaned in, capturing her lips again. "You are," he growled into her mouth between kisses, "without a doubt... the most... frustrating woman... on the planet."

She moaned as his teeth dragged along the sensitive skin of her neck. "You're an asshole, you know that?" But even as she said the words her hands went to his belt, unbuckling it and sliding it out of the loops.

"So I've heard," he muttered. Kissing and nipping at her collarbone, Edward batted her hands away, going instantly to the button of her jeans and sliding them down her shapely hips. Rosalie threw her head back, her hands threading into his hair as she whimpered. His fingers, remarkably talented and delightfully long, found their mark quickly. He had her completely worked up in a matter of seconds, though whether that was expertise or the culmination of the volatile atmosphere between them finally coming to a head, she didn't know.

"Tell me you're on something," he demanded in a gravelly growl against her ear, his fingers still in her and circling her.

She couldn't have children but he didn't need to know that then. And no matter what animosity existed between them, she trusted him. Besides, in the weeks they'd known each other, she hadn't seen him so much as flirt with another woman. "I'm good. We're good," she managed to utter, her voice breathy.

Then his fingers were gone from her, and Rosalie whimpered. He needed his hands to get his own pants unbuttoned and shoved down. Stupid prick. Hadn't she tried to do that before? To punish him for this lapse, she took his earlobe in her mouth and bit down harder than was entirely necessary.

"Ow!" Edward protested, and he glared at her. His hand came down hard on the bare skin of her thigh, and Rosalie yelped. He smirked as he yanked her panties down and off, sending them in the direct she'd kicked her pants. His hand gripped her leg just behind her knee as he pulled it up, pushing her back against the door. With his free hand he guided his cock to her entrance and with one, two long thrusts, he was buried deep inside her.

It wasn't tender - that much was certain. Rosalie was held up entirely by the strength of his hips as he slammed repeatedly into hers. His hand was a vice grip on her leg, keeping her open wide to him. His other hand was flat on the door next to her head, keeping his balance as he fucked her.

For her part, Rosalie's hands were everywhere. She dug her nails into his back, dragging them upward and reveling in the animalistic grunt it earned her. She cupped his ass and tugged at his hair.

When their lips were free they taunted each other, Rosalie demanding, "Harder. Faster. More," until Edward claimed her lips with aggressive force.

There was something about the anger that undulated like a living thing all around them. It created a sort of haze, and Rosalie felt as though she was made of pure animal instinct. Maybe that was why, for the first time in what might have been forever, Rosalie felt herself losing the perfect control she had over her body. With Edward's cock filling her and hitting that sweet spot at her core, she felt the tight knot of pure pleasure building, throbbing, becoming more and more a part of her until she was robbed of words and thought entirely. When her mouth was free, the noises she made only vaguely resembled a human being but she had nothing left to feel embarrassed about that.

Orgasm hit her hard, and she buried her face in his neck, biting down on his shoulder hard to smother a wordless scream. The last conscious part of her felt him trust hard and frantic until he released inside of her, gasping like a man being strangled as he came.

His body pinning her against the door was the only thing keeping her from melting into a puddle on the floor. Her legs were useless - made of rubber, and so she clung to him with her arms around his neck as they both panted. His forehead rested on hers, his breath hot and fast against her clammy skin, and when she made herself open her eyes, she found him watching her. The look in the emerald depths was intense flecked with uncertainty.

Well, she had no idea what the fuck had just happened either.

He slipped out of her, carefully setting the leg that had been wrapped around his waist on the ground. That hand now free, he brought it up, cupping her cheek in an inexplicably soft action. Rosalie's heart thudded painfully for whole other reasons then.

When Edward leaned in, kissing her gently, Rosalie didn't pull away. She closed her eyes again, kissing him back with little, almost shy motions.

Whatever had happened between them was already done. She couldn't take it back. She wasn't sure if she even wanted to, and while that fact honestly frightened her, she simply wouldn't allow herself to think about it in that moment.

And that was probably why she didn't say a word in protest when Edward hooked his arm under her legs, picking her up and carrying her toward his bedroom. No, she just kept her arms around his neck, her mouth moving on his even as he walked them down the hallway. She didn't argue when he laid her down on his bed. And when he entered her for the second time that evening, Rosalie felt relief mixed among the pleasure. The atmosphere between them, after their initial coupling, was definitely calmer, but she was far from sated. She could only be glad that he agreed.

**A/N: Agh! Did I just write that? Anyway. **

**Thank you to TwilightMundi – it still makes me giggle that she betas my A/N's too. Hehehehehe. **

**So sorry for not replying to reviews. I am utterly amused, and a little horrified, that I'm a gateway drug, introducing some of you to Roseward. Sooooo…. Are you still with me after that sordid little ordeal?**


	3. Getting Used to You

**Chapter 3: Getting Used to You**

**Dedication: To my Rose lovin' darling from your very own Rose. Thanks for beta'ing this for me so I can do the whole 7/7 thing.**

_**"I'm still here because**_

_**I've got nothing else to do**_

_**You're an asshole  
>But I'm getting used to you<br>I like the fact that  
>You talk incessantly<br>I got a thing for assholes  
>Who tell good stories"<strong>_

_**~Used to You, Ani DiFranco**_

For a handful of moments as she woke, Rosalie could not recall why her body ached so much. She tried to remember if she'd started a new workout routine, or if she'd simply pressed herself too hard in class.

Then she remembered.

The delicious ache that went down to her bones was from exercising muscles that hadn't seen action in a long, long time. Her lips still felt bruised, and her body felt slightly grimy from falling asleep with a sheen of sweat.

Needing to be sure she wasn't dreaming, Rosalie opened her eyes, blinking at the unfamiliar surroundings. This was not her bed and not her house. She lay on her side, and the first thing she saw was the pleasantly muscular arm wrapped around her waist. Even though she knew who she would see, Rosalie's stomach still twisted when she looked up, finding Edward's peaceful face on the pillow next to her.

Shit, what had she done?

Her instinct was torn. She desperately wanted to run, get out of there before he woke up and she had to face what she'd done. But there was another part of her that wanted to stay – curl up against his side and let sleep take her again.

Rosalie's heart began to pound erratically. Carefully, she rolled out from under his arm, freezing as Edward grumbled in his sleep, his eyebrows furrowing as if he missed her presence.

When she was sure he wasn't going to wake up, Rosalie looked around, locating her shirt. She realized that her jeans and underwear were somewhere near the front door. Suddenly mortified, Rosalie hoped with everything in her that Jasper had stayed with Alice last night.

Pissed that he had put her in this position, Rosalie decided that the least Edward could do was give up a pair of his sweat pants so she could make the walk of shame in relative comfort. Quietly, she opened the drawers of his dresser, lingering a little longer than was absolutely necessary as she looked through his socks and boxers. Eventually, she found what she was looking for. Closing the drawer, she stole into his bathroom to clean up.

The woman in the mirror was almost a stranger. Her hair was a mauled mess – rumpled in all the right places to look less like a case of bed head and more like someone had gathered all of it into his large hand, gripping tightly as he'd slammed into her from behind. Her skin had always been sensitive and so she could trace the map of where his mouth and his stubble covered chin had been quite easily: her shoulder bore very light bruises where his teeth had nipped, and her neck had a slight rash from his scratchy five o'clock shadow.

But perhaps most jarring of all was the pink gleam that dusted her usual pallor. She was unquestionably glowing naturally in a way that most women tried to replicate with layers of make up.

Rosalie's mouth went dry. She didn't quite know how to deal with the rush of giddiness that welled in her. She was out of her depth here, caught between thinking she should be ashamed and actually feeling… pleased.

It took her a while to restore the woman in the mirror to someone she vaguely recognized. She combed the snarls out of her hair, and thanked her lucky stars that Edward was apparently anally retentive about being prepared for a toiletry shortage. She found unopened toothbrushes along with bars of soap, toothpaste, deodorant and hair gel.

Feeling more like herself, Rosalie emerged, relieved that Edward was still fast asleep. Good, that meant she could get out of there without having to talk to him. Now she only need to figure out where her bra went…

_Oh, of course._

She spotted her bra in one of the worst possible places it could be – right under Edward's pillow toward the middle of the bed. She waged a brief internal debate, wondering if she should just let him keep the damn thing. In the end she decided against it. She'd be damned if she was going to leave him some fucking trophy.

Keeping her eyes on the prize, Rosalie slipped her hand under his pillow, working the thing out a smoothly as possible. She grinned triumphantly when it came loose.

Before she could pull back, a strong hand wrapped around her wrist. Her heart skipped a beat, her stomach twisting with a kind of dread as she let her eyes drift up.

"Briar Rose." He was smiling - a gorgeous, lazy grin to match the soft, sleepy look in his eyes. "You know," he started, his voice low and scratchy, "if you do the thing where you disappear the morning after, it's just going to be awkward. You might never call me back, but our best friends are seriously falling for each other." He trailed his fingers down to her hand and twined their fingers, tugging on her arm gently. With a sigh, Rosalie sat on the edge of the bed.

Propping himself up on one elbow, Edward's look became a little more serious. "Tell me the truth. Do you regret last night?"

A smart ass remark lingered on the tip of her tongue, but Rosalie couldn't find any emotion behind it. Finally, she shook her head, surprised because she was honestly fine with what she'd done.

The edges of Edward's lips tugged upward again. Cocky fucking bastard. "Good. I don't either."

Apparently, that was all he wanted to know. He rolled onto his back, his arm thrown over his eyes, and was back asleep in seconds.

_Fucking asshole._

**~0~**

"Why don't you regret it?"

Edward smirked. He couldn't help it. He was glad that Rosalie had called instead of appearing on his doorstep because he was damn sure the smirk would have pissed her off. Then again, that wasn't difficult.

"What's there to regret?" he asked, propping his feet up on his desk. He waited, listening to the heavy silence on the other end of the phone. "Briar Rose-"

"Would you please stop calling me that?" she sighed.

"Rose, it was better than yelling, don't you think? I mean... I found it infinitely more enjoyable."

Another sigh. "Be a little more blasé. Please."

"I don't know what you want me to tell you, Rosalie. Neither of us is in a relationship. I don't see how it could hurt anyone, so, again - what's to regret?" he asked easily.

More silence. Then, "I'll be home all day tomorrow," and a click.

Edward laughed as he put his phone down on the desk

**~0~**

It wasn't that Edward didn't have his doubts. He just wasn't sure what to do about them.

He meant what he said about regret - he had none. However, it felt strange to be doing this with Rosalie. It wasn't the first time he'd had sex with someone he wasn't interested in dating. As few people as Edward had patience for, he simply didn't date much. However, she was the first one he had to see with any degree of frequency. It had the makings for more complications than the average booty call.

Still, despite his reservations, Edward found himself on Rosalie's porch the next day, dressed in the black jeans he had it on good authority made his ass look delicious.

Rosalie was not without her charms. Certainly, Edward was less than appreciative of her often irrational behavior toward him, but there was plenty to admire. While she could stand to take the venom out of her words, Edward preferred her blunt attitude to the passive aggression he saw others wield so often. She was strong and independent. Despite a self-centered streak, she was a great, steadfast friend to Alice. She was smart - he couldn't deny that.

And she was good in bed... and against the wall.

Which was definitely a contributing factor to Edward knocking on her door.

When Rosalie answered the door they simply stared at each other for a moment. Edward felt awkward. Rosalie looked uncertain. He wondered if she was going to slam the door in his face, but then her hands darted out, grabbing his shirt in her fists as she hauled him inside. She was a remarkably strong woman, and Edward found himself with his back pressed up against the door so hard that it pushed his breath right out of his body.

Edward was forced to breathe through his nose as his mouth was instantly occupied. His hands skimmed up and down her back, threading through her long hair as they kissed. Her slender body pressed into his - soft breasts at his chest and her hips brushing against his, making him instantly hard.

She kissed along his jawline as they caught their breaths. "Have you eaten?"

Edward's mind was muddled by lust. He could barely concentrate, what with the way her hands were playing his body, touching and teasing, and yet she was throwing inane questions at him? "Um. Yes?"

Her hands traveled up to his shoulders, and she pushed down. "I think it's time for dessert then."

His eyes locked with hers, momentarily and uncharacteristically slow-minded. Then, when he understood what she was asking for - or rather, demanding - he grinned wickedly. His cock gave a little jump because it was fucking sexy when a woman knew what she wanted.

Keeping his eyes on her, Edward let his back slide down the length of the door, his hands falling with him - down her back, over her ass, down her legs. He made himself comfortable, sitting indian-style on the ground between her slightly spread legs. Moving slowly, he unbuttoned and unzipped her pants, watching as her breath grew more labored again. Her breasts rose and fell, alluring, though he wished they weren't covered by even that thin, slip of a shirt.

As he worked her pants down, helping her out of them, Rosalie leaned forward, one arm propped on the door and her forehead resting against her skin. Her free hand was in his hair, running her fingers along his scalp as he began to press kisses against the inside of her thighs. His hands ran up the backs of her legs, cupping her ass as he began to probe her sex with his tongue.

Edward was a quick study and found his way around her body with ease. He learned the speed and pressure to use his tongue and his lips to make Rosalie writhe. Her hips bucked, and Edward kept his hands on her hips to still her.

"Edward. Fuck," she breathed, moaning as her hand fisted his hair.

When the frequency of her whimpers and moans got closer together, and louder, Edward brought his fingers to play, curling them inside of her while his tongue flicked rapidly against her clit.

She came, her hand holding his head to her center as she bucked against him.

"Don't look so fucking smug, asshole," Rosalie groaned as Edward stood, wrapping his arms around her waist as she caught her breath.

He kissed her, his tongue lapping along hers, sharing her taste. "I'm glad your thighs were clamped around my ears or you might have blown my eardrums out."

Rosalie smiled sweetly, hooked her fingers into the waistband of his pants, and yanked his pants down. She was on her knees in the next second, successfully wiping the smug grin right off his face as her lips enveloped his cock.

**~0~**

"Where have you been?" Jasper asked, amused as Edward walked in the door.

"Nowhere you need to be concerned about," Edward returned easily. "Why, where have you been?"

"Oh, you know where I've been," Jasper chuckled. "But that's normal. You being out and about until all hours of the evening... that is abnormal. So I'm curious."

Edward patted Jasper's cheek as he walked passed to the kitchen. "You're cute when you're jealous."

His best friend appeared in the kitchen a moment later, leaning over the refrigerator as Edward searched for dinner. "You got laid,"Jasper accused.

Edward's eyes darted up. "What?"

"You're strutting," Jasper grinned. "You got laid," he said again. "I didn't know you were seeing anyone. Who is it, man?"

Not answering right away, Edward closed the refrigerator, shrugging easily. "A gentleman never tells."

**~One Week Later~**

"Where you headed?" Rosalie asked Alice as they finished their lunch.

Alice hesitated. "Going out with Jasper and Edward," she admitted finally. "Jasper told me I could invite you, but I figured..."

"Figured what?" Rosalie asked, digging through her purse for her money. "I haven't seen Jasper in a couple of weeks. It'd be fun."

Alice narrowed her eyes. "But you and Edward..."

Rosalie smiled at her friend. "I'm a big girl, Alice. We can handle it...and I'll behave."

**~Two Weeks Later~ **

"Just for your information, pouting and grumbling are not attractive," Rosalie arched an eyebrow, watching Edward grimace out of the corner of her eye.

"Can I tell you again how unnecessary this is?" he asked, looking around as if he was at in an underground lair of some criminal mastermind instead of at Westlake Center Mall.

"Were the other eighty times not enough?" Rose groused back.

"Jasper doesn't need a big birthday blow-out. He'll be more than happy with Alice giving him birthday nookie and promising to go to that film noir festival he's been bugging about," Edward explained.

"Trust me. Alice will provide birthday nookie at midnight, three A.M., in the shower in the morning and probably a nooner before we see either of them. Nookie is covered," Rosalie said with a scoff. "You're just going to have to accept that Alice is throwing this party. The sooner you help me find a gift for Jasper, the sooner you're free to go."

"Oh, I don't know," Edward sighed, looking over at her with a small smile on his face. "The company isn't bad."

Rosalie felt a pleased flutter in the pit of her stomach and tried not to smile.

Edward sighed again. "The shops are closing, though. Let me walk you to your car."

They exited the mall, looking around the parking lot. People were sparse and they were mostly quiet as they walked. Rosalie wrapped her arms around herself, feeling instantly creeped out. She never would have admitted it, but she was glad that Edward was at her side tonight.

She wondered if she should say something, and felt ridiculous at how out of sorts she suddenly was. Sure, yelling at him was easy - she was used to that. Fucking him was ... well... wonderful, if she wanted to be honest about it. This hanging out, being friends thing didn't come naturally. She felt ridiculously awkward.

As she searched for something to say, a bray of raucous laughter distracted her. A short distance away, a group of rough looking men stood by a car.

Rosalie's heart started beating out of control. She had to go by them if she wanted to get to her car.

Clearing his throat, Edward said nothing as he walked around to her other side, effectively putting himself between her and the unruly bunch just as their eyes began to wander, raking up and down her body. He drew her close under his arm, glaring daggers at the group who cackled as they passed.

The minute they were out of eye-line, Rosalie ducked away from him. "I can take care of myself," she said, her voice clipped.

"I know," was all he said.

They walked for another few paces.

Feeling too much like a shy high school girl again, Rosalie silently slipped her hand into his. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw his lips raise, and his fingers tightened around hers.

**~One week later~**

"Not today," Rosalie said, regretfully ducking Edward's kiss as she retreated back into her house. "I'm getting sick."

"You don't look that bad," Edward said, brushing his knuckles over her forehead. "I don't think you have a fever."

"I don't look _that _bad? Cullen, I look spectacular," she quipped. "And I don't have a fever. I said I'm _getting_ sick, not that I'm sick now." She sat on the couch, gathering her blanket tighter around her shoulder. "I'm trying to ward it off."

"Soooo," Edward said, sitting next to her on the couch, "your stamina hasn't been affected."

She glared at him. "No..."

"And the idea is to keep your body nice and warm, right?" he said, scooting closer to her and running his finger along the inside of her robe.

Rosalie sighed, a thrill of pleasure going up her spine. "You," she said, leaning in and kissing his cheek as she gave in, "are an idiot."

**~Some Days Later~**

"Are you an idiot?" Rosalie called from the living room, watching as Edward gathered his duffel bag.

"You usually accuse me of being one," Edward grumbled. He sniffled.

"You're miserable. Stay home. Get better sooner," she said.

"I have to work," he said again.

"You know those things called sick days? I'm not sure what you think they're for-"

"Rosalie," he groaned. "Please. I'm not in the mood."

She sighed. "I told you not to kiss me last weekend."

"I'll survive. And I have to go." He reached out, squeezing her hand and offering a smile. "Thanks for letting me crash here last night. Jasper would have killed me if I got him sick this week."

"Well, I got Alice too. I suppose it's the least I could have done." Rosalie said dryly. "Where did you tell him you went?"

Edward looked down, and Rosalie thought his smile was a little sad. "Friend of a friend. Your secret is safe."

"Edward..." she started but he was already moving. He was gone in the next minute.

**~0~**

What was it about Edward Cullen that had her doing ridiculous things?

Was she really heading toward his office on the UDub campus with a steaming container of soup and a Coldbuster Jamba Juice?

Clearing her throat, Rosalie held her head high and continued down the corridor of the sports department, ignoring the stares of the jocks as she passed. Locating the trainers and therapists offices, she pushed forward, trying to figure out which one belonged to Edward.

"Can I help you?"

Rosalie whirled to find a woman - a gorgeous brunette with a killer body - leaning against the door jamb to one of the offices with her arms crossed over her ample chest.

Tossing her hair and trying to ignore the stabs of jealousy that attacked her, Rosalie looked at the woman cooly. "I'm looking for Edward Cullen."

"He's out with a friend," the woman said, her voice equally chilly. "Maybe I can help you. I'm Heidi. We work together. Closely."

Rosalie hated the heavy implication in the other woman's voice almost as much as she hated the sudden urge she had to rip her pretty brown hair right out of her head. "No thanks. I'll just leave this for him," she said, forcing her voice to be as even and unconcerned as she could possibly make it.

Smirking, Heidi pointed to another office door. "Right there."

Pissed - at herself, Heidi and, unreasonably or not, Edward - Rosalie slammed the soup and juice down on Edward's desk. She spun on her heel, wanting to get out of there as quickly as possible.

Her rage was cut short the minute she exited the building, replaced by an unfathomable terror. Her skin went clammy, covered in gooseflesh. Her pulse was thready. Rosalie had to lean heavily against the wall when her knees felt weak and her head swam. For too many seconds she was frozen.

Then, her survival instinct kicked in and she ran. She didn't even realize she was crying, or how badly she was shaking until she stopped running. Her hands trembled so badly she dropped the keys four times before she was finally able to get inside the relative safety of her car.

Once inside she was able to gain a small hold of herself. Though she desperately wanted to be as far away from the campus as possible, she recognized she was in no condition to drive. Instead, she slammed her fists down on the button that locked all the car doors. She did it several times - just to be sure.

Leaning her head on the steering wheel, she sobbed, suddenly barraged by visions of a night she'd tried so hard to put in her past. It didn't matter that it had been nearly a decade. It didn't matter that she wasn't 17 anymore, and she was capable of protecting herself. Obviously, all the self defense training in the world wouldn't have helped her if she was incapacitated by fear the moment a real threat was near.

More than anything, she felt stupid. She hadn't meant for it to happen, but some part of her had begun to truly trust Edward. She'd sworn she would never play the fool again, she would never be as stupid as the idiotic girl she once was.

Disgustedly wiping away her tears, Rosalie straightened up. She started the car, backing out of the space and peeling out of the parking lot so fast the wheels squealed.

**~0~**

By the end of the day, Rosalie had taken five showers. She'd ransacked her home, finding any trace of Edward and throwing it in the garbage.

He'd called. Several times, in fact. She ignored each call until she finally turned her phone off altogether. As she'd expected, shortly after he got off work, there was a knock on her door.

Rosalie wrapped her hand around the mace in her pocket before she went to answer the door. She stuck it out, pointing it in Edward's face as she opened the door.

"Rose..." he said, the smile on his face changing instantly to confused concern.

"You stay away from me, you son of a bitch," she snarled at him, her voice surprisingly steady.

"What are you-" Edward began, taking a step closer.

Rosalie brandished the can again, her face a mask of ferocity. "I mean it. Not another step. If you think I'm going to let you hurt me, you have another thing coming."

His eyebrows furrowed as he held his hands up like she was arresting him instead of threatening him. "Why the hell would you think I was trying to hurt you? I came here to thank you for the soup. Rose...what happened?"

"I saw you with that ... that... fucking pig," Rosalie screamed, suddenly unable to keep her cool. "Today, on campus. I saw you walking with him like you were good fucking friends."

Edward blinked, trying to figure out what she could be talking about. "You mean John? John Lambert?"

The sound of his name made Rosalie's stomach churn sickeningly.

"I don't understand. What does John have to do with anything?"

Rosalie laughed, the sound coming out strangled and almost maniacal. "Don't tell me you didn't know. You looked like such great pals today. He probably got a good laugh out of it."

"I don't know what you're talking about," Edward said evenly, looking like he desperately wanted to go to her.

"Oh, no? So John didn't tell you that he used to be best friends with my boyfriend?" she spat. "Good buddies ... just like you and him now. He didn't offer to hold me down for you like he did for Royce? Just as long he got a piece of the pie, right? That's the deal?"

Confusion was quickly replaced by horror as he processed her words. He swallowed hard, his eyes heavy with repulsion, anger and grief as he met hers. "Are you saying..."

"Your friend John and my former boyfriend raped me," she shouted, completely out of control of her words or her emotions. "They raped me, and they hurt me so badly that I can't even have kids of my own. I was 17 years old and they took everything. Everything. Your fucking friend."

"Rosalie," he took a step toward her, his voice raw and desperate.

"No! You stay the fuck away from me. Don't touch me!" Her hands were shaking and she was quickly losing what little cool she had. She felt so completely exposed - violated all over again - and she needed him gone because she was going to break down. Soon. But not in front of him. Fuck him.

"Please... let me..."

"Go away," she screamed. She slammed the door in his stricken face, her shaking fingers hardly able to work the one, two, three locks on her door. She knelt there, plagued by horrible memories of John's hands wrapped around her wrists, pressing down on her throat, roughly kneading and groping her breasts as Royce assaulted her. Those visions poisoned what had been, till that point, lovely memories.

Edward had been re-writing her concepts of sex as something she had to fear.

All of that was destroyed now.

Her hands in her hair, Rosalie keened, completely heartbroken and alone.

_**~0~**_

_**"You said, this is my bedroom window**_  
><em><strong>You said, this is my view<strong>_  
><em><strong>You said, lie down here with me<strong>_  
><em><strong>And see the things that i do<strong>_  
><em><strong>Like you were trying to tell me something<strong>_  
><em><strong>About the way you live<strong>_  
><em><strong>Like you would give me something<strong>_  
><em><strong>If you had something to give"<strong>_

_**~Used to You, Ani DiFranco**_

_**~0~**_

**A/N: Ouch. I know, I know. But hey - you did get 3 updates in a week. That's promising for me finishing this quickly...and at 5 chapters total, the angst can't last long, can it?**


	4. Hard to Face the Truth

**Chapter 4: Hard to Face the Truth**

**Dedication: Dear jadedandboring. You're not supposed to beta your own damn gift, ffs. Love you anyway, cuz you're amazing, just the way you are. Even though you make me do naughty things.**

_**"I tried so hard to hate you **_  
><em><strong>But it only makes it all worse <strong>_  
><em><strong>I only end up hating myself <strong>_  
><em><strong>And as my hatred grows <strong>_  
><em><strong>So do the lies <strong>_  
><em><strong>It's hard to face the truth sometimes <strong>_  
><em><strong>God I feel so useless"<strong>_

_**~Sometimes it Hurts, Stabbing Westward**_

As Edward stared at Rosalie's closed door, his heart shattered for the woman he could hear sobbing on the other side. He'd never felt so utterly torn. He wanted to knock down the door if it meant he could hold her and take away all the pain she was in. But at the same time, his blood boiled with a thirst for vengeance. It was the same throat-closing rage he felt when he worked at the rape crisis center and heard stories of women and men being horribly abused by the very people who were supposed to love them. And it was worse because he'd considered John Lambert a friend. The ugliness he felt like curdling milk in his veins was sickening. He felt violated because he's trusted John to at least be a person he could respect.

How could he blame Rosalie for thinking the worst if he could consort with an animal like that?

And the guilt... The guilt was overwhelming. How could he not have seen the signs? Looking back, he recalled every time she yanked her body away from him. At the time, he'd read it as her vain desire to believe that everyone was trying to hit on her. And then, it perfectly explained her 'spikiness' as Jasper called it. Of course. The person she trusted the most had hurt her in a way no one should be hurt. Rosalie's bitchy behavior was a self-defense mechanism designed to keep everyone out.

Edward couldn't imagine what it had taken for her to trust him with her body, and now that trust was betrayed.

Remembering the first time, Edward felt shame creeping up from the very soles of his feet to consume him. He'd been so rough with her...

As if in tune with his thoughts, Rosalie's heartrending sobs got louder. His arms literally ached to be around her, as if he could gather her up and pull her inside of him, keeping her safe from the cruelty of the outside world.

But he couldn't. He understood that.

Fumbling for his phone, Edward quickly dialed Alice's number.

"Hello?" Alice answered, but with her stuffy nose it sounded more like 'heddo'. He hated to bother her when she was in bed, but there was no one else.

"Alice?"

"Edward. You sound worse than I do. Poor kid."

"Listen," he said urgently. "I need you to do me a favor. It's Rosalie I... I did something really stupid, and she needs you. I know you're sick. I wouldn't ask you to come if it wasn't important."

There was a pause on the other end of the line, and Edward had to struggle not to start yelling. As it was, he didn't want to alert Rosalie to the fact he was still here.

"What are you doing with Rosalie?" Alice asked suspiciously.

"It's not important. I'll explain later. Please... just get here."

She must have heard the desperation in his voice because Alice quickly agreed.

Though it couldn't possibly have been that long, Edward thought he would go out of his mind waiting for Alice to get there. He distracted himself by imagining all the ways he was going to hurt John. It wouldn't be so difficult to track down his address.

He was so wrapped up in his plotting that he didn't notice when Alice drove up, towing Jasper with her.

"This had better be good because if either of you get me sick..." Jasper trailed off. The look on Edward's face must have been a cross between fury and horror. "What happened?"

Edward looked at Alice instead. "She needs you. Please go to her now," he begged.

Alice looked at him, her gaze both curious and accusing, likely wondering what it was he'd done. But thankfully, she didn't question any further. Instead, she moved to the door, knocking. "Rose?"

Rosalie's crying had decreased in volume before Alice and Jasper got there, so Edward wasn't surprised when there was only silence to answer Alice's knock. Alice tried again, this time receiving a desperate, pleading, "Go away!"

Alice didn't know, Edward realized numbly.

"I'm coming in, Rose," Alice said through the door, fishing a set of keys out of her purse.

"What happened?" Jasper asked again, only for Edward to hear.

Edward just shook his head, climbing to unsteady feet. He swayed and would have fallen if Jasper hadn't caught him. Fuck. He hadn't realized, as he sat outside in the cold air, that his head was growing heavy and his thoughts clouded with sickness.

"Jesus Christ, Edward," Jasper admonished. "You're burning up. What are you doing out here, anyway? What are you doing with Rosalie?"

"I've got to go," Edward muttered, trying to push away from Jasper.

His friend laughed, tightening his hold. "You're not going anywhere but home to bed. Look at you. You're a mess."

"I'm going to mess up John Lambert pretty badly," Edward growled, pushing at Jasper again. He was ... feeble. Edward frowned, irritated.

"I don't know who that is," Jasper said easily, "but it doesn't matter. Give me your keys. Don't make me frisk you."

Edward had to admit he wasn't in the best shape. His cold had come back in force and he was woozy. Maybe it was better. He had more time to plan.

Once Jasper had piled him into the passenger seat of his Volvo, Edward drowsed with his head against the window. He tried to put together how everything had gone so wrong so quickly.

That morning, he'd begun to acknowledge to himself that he didn't want to be Rosalie's secret anymore. After that first morning, they'd never talked about what they were doing. They appeared at each others doors at random, kissing and touching without words or other expectations. But lately, something had begun to change. He couldn't tell when - maybe when she'd held his hand in public and he'd felt his chest get warm, expanding with pride and adoration - but at some point, she'd become precious to him.

"Edward," Jasper's voice cut through the haze.

"Hmm?"

"Seriously. What happened? Why are you with Rosalie? Who the fuck is John Lambert and why do you want to hurt him?"

Maybe it was because he was fevered and half out of it, but Edward was instantly honest with his friend. "I've been uh... sleeping with Rosalie."

The car actually swerved as Jasper gaped at him in surprise. "What? Edward... you and Rosalie don't like each other."

"Tell me something I don't know," Edward grumbled, leaning back against his seat. "I was... so rough with her." He rolled his head toward Jasper, his eyes wide and pleading. "I didn't know. I swear to God I didn't know. I should have known, but I didn't."

"You're delirious," Jasper informed him.

Groaning, Edward shut his eyes. His thoughts were confusing - muddled and heavy with guilt, fury and shame. Jesus, he was so tired. He wanted to close his eyes and pretend that the whole last hour of his life was some horrible nightmare... maybe a fever dream of one of the stories he'd heard at the rape crisis center.

He must have been babbling because, as Jasper helped him out of the car, his friend was telling him to calm down. Jasper helped him to his bed and coaxed him to swallow a dose of Nyquil. Then the world faded away.

**~0~**

When Edward woke, the fever had broken. His skin was covered in a cold sweat, his body shaking with chills. But his mind was clear again and he remembered all that had happened. Edward sat up so fast his head spun.

He let his anger be his energy, climbing to his feet and looking around for his shoes. When he couldn't find them in his room, he wandered out to the living room. "Have you seen my shoes?" he asked Jasper, finding the other man on the couch with his glasses on and his laptop out.

"Go back to bed, Edward. You sound horrible," Jasper said, his voice soothing as he set his laptop aside.

"I'm fine. I need to go... talk to an... acquaintance of mine," Edward muttered darkly.

Jasper sighed. "John Lambert, right?"

Edward said nothing, trying to remember what he'd told Jasper. Everything after Rosalie had screamed at him was a little fuzzy.

The blond haired man looked down at his feet, taking his glasses off and rubbing his eyes. His shoulders seemed bowed with grief. "Alice called. She said that Rosalie is sleeping but that she was very upset. She said that Rosalie wouldn't tell her anything except that you were friends with one of the bastards who'd raped her years ago."

Edward's fists clenched and he had to try very hard to breathe evenly. "I didn't know," he said quietly.

"You couldn't have known," Jasper agreed. He scoffed quietly. "Alice has known Rosalie for years and she didn't know."

"I should have known," Edward said harshly. "_I_ should have known. And I have to go bash John's fucking face in, so if you'll give me my shoes..."

"And what's that going to do, Edward?" Jasper challenged. "Maybe you'll break his nose, but you'll end up in jail for assault. You'd lose your job."

"I don't give a shit!"

"I know you don't, but think it through," Jasper said evenly. "When you get arrested, you're going to have to tell the cops why you started wailing on a guy who was your friend. And then you're going to have to tell them what prompted your fit of temper. Edward... Rosalie didn't talk about this with her best friend. You think she wants some police officers - strangers - asking her questions?"

Edward said nothing, and he breathed heavily, trying to find a way to argue with his friend's logic. Finally, he flopped down into the La-Z-Boy, his arms crossed. "Then what? He just gets away with it? With hurting her? With making me believe he was a decent person?"

"We'll find another way. We'll figure something out that doesn't involve you going to jail." When Edward didn't refute this, Jasper continued. "Do you even know what happened? I mean... not for nothing, but I think it's strange that she didn't press charges."

"Maybe she did," Edward mumbled tiredly. "Rape charges... they're notoriously hard to prove. Most of the time, trying for a conviction isn't even worth the emotional stress of a trial." But even as he said it, Edward realized that it didn't quite add up. She'd said they'd hurt her bad enough that she couldn't have children. He shuddered, having enough knowledge of the body to know that as horrible as any rape was, for her to have sustained that much damage, the assault must have been particularly brutal.

It was difficult to taper down the fury so he could think straight. He couldn't imagine how he was going to deal with running into John on campus.

Tapping his chin, an idea occurred to Edward then and he searched his pockets for his phone. Finding it, he quickly dialed his parents' number. "Hi, Mom. No, I'm fine...just a little sniffle. No..." he rolled his eyes, too impatient to deal wit his mother's worry. "I'm fine," he insisted. "Sorry. I need to talk to Dad. Please." He tapped his foot anxiously, waiting for his father to pick up the phone. "Dad? I could really use the number of that P.I. friend of yours..."

**~0~**

John Lambert.

After all these years, Rosalie finally had a last name - not that it did her any good now.

When she'd been attacked, she knew nothing of her second rapist except that he was Royce's friend, John, visiting from Georgia. Royce, drunk and obnoxious, had introduced them only minutes before they had their hands on her. With his DNA on her and in her and under her fingernails because she'd scratched the hell out of his face, Royce's only option had been to plead guilty, hoping for lenience.

John was another story. By the time she was conscious enough to implicate him, the man was long gone. He'd gotten what he wanted from her without leaving his DNA behind - she remembered that of all the stupid things she noticed that night, one of them was that he wore gloves when he crushed her wrists in his hands. Of course. The New York air was chilly that time of year.

Rosalie had dealt with the overwhelming paranoia - always having to look over her shoulder, never quite being comfortable with the shadows - by moving across the country. She knew where Royce was. Even though he'd gotten out of prison a few years before, he was high society enough that his general whereabouts were easily traceable. Thus far, he'd kept to the terms of his probation and didn't leave the state.

With no other choice but to go on with her life, Rosalie had pushed her innate fear of the missing link - John - out of her mind as much as possible. What were the odds that a southerner from Georgia would end up in Seattle anyway?

According to the Google search she did, those odds got significantly better when he was a popular men's basketball coach recently recruited to UDub from Georgia State University.

Rosalie wrapped her arms around herself, trying to soothe her trembling body. Her skin crawled, and she could feel his hands on her again... holding her down... hurting her.

She shook, trying hard to block the memories, rebuild the protective wall she'd hid behind for so long. Wasn't she supposed to be past this part? It was done. She'd already gone through the worst part of surviving, hadn't she? It was supposed to be better.

"Hey," Alice called quietly, setting a plate of food on the arm of the chair next to Rosalie. "Check it out. I'm all domestic."

Rosalie tried to muster a smile. Some part of her was glad that Alice hadn't left her alone since a few days before when she'd blurted out the secret she'd kept. She didn't want to be alone, and yet she resented her best friend's presence at the same time. After all the years she'd worked, becoming stronger and smarter, Rosalie hated that she'd frozen when she saw John and Edward on campus. She wanted to be able to say she felt safe with just her own wits and fists.

Trying hard not to snap at Alice, Rose managed to choke down a few bites of the dinner she'd prepared. Her appetite was non-existent, especially given that she'd felt nauseated on a near constant basis ever since she'd seen John's face.

Alice cleared her throat, and Rosalie realized that she hadn't been keeping up with her part of the conversation. "I'm sorry, what?"

"I said," Alice began softly, "Edward wanted me to give you this letter."

Rosalie wondered vaguely when Alice had seen Edward. When had she found the time? "I don't want anything of his," she snarled harshly. She didn't need to look up to know that Alice's eyes would be sad.

"At least hear what he has to say before you dismiss him."

What would he do? Write sweet nothings, trying to charm her because he'd lost his bedmate? There was nothing Edward could say that would take away what she was feeling now. Besides, what did he care, really? Royce had been ten times as sweet as Edward ever was, and he had turned into a monster once his friend was there to encourage him. Why should she expect Edward - who she knew held a certain amount of disdain for her - to be any different? "If you're so interested in what he has to say, then you read it. Nothing he has to say holds any interest for me," she snapped at Alice.

Rosalie stood at the end of her proclamation, walking toward the kitchen with her still mostly full plate. She went running back to the living room when she heard the tell-tale sound of paper ripping - like Alice was opening the envelope. "What are you doing?"

Alice looked up, a picture of innocence. "You told me to read it if I was curious. Did you really think I wouldn't be curious? I mean, come on, Rose. Whatever else happened, I can't believe you didn't tell me you were sleeping with Edward. I'd have believed that you would chop off all your hair before I believed you'd sleep with a man you threaten to kill so often."

Maybe, under different circumstances, Rosalie would have smiled. She had a vague memory of life before... of giggling about boys with her best friend, Vera. There wasn't a lot she wouldn't have given to feel that way again.

"You know, if it wasn't for the fact that every time I've seen you two in the same room, I was afraid one of you would spontaneously combust, I'd have suggested it a long time ago," Alice said toughtfully. "Most men - you'd chew them up and spit them out. Too tender, that's their problem. And you know you don't have a lot of patience for most people. He's intelligent, worldly. And lord knows, you two are just so damn beautif-" Alice was cut off as she reached out to pat Rosalie's arm.

"Don't touch me," Rosalie hissed, automatically recoiling to the corner of the couch. She caught herself a second later and tried to relax. "Sorry."

"It's okay," Alice said, and Rosalie could tell she was trying to keep the pity out her voice.

"Fine," Rosalie grumbled. "I'll read the damn letter. But don't expect anything to change. I don't want to see him again. Ever. I'm sorry if that messes up things for you and Jasper but-"

"Rose," Alice interrupted. "Don't apologize to me for what you need. It's fine. I'm a big girl, and I promise I'm not going to ditch you to go play with my boyfriend. Well. At least not much." She winked and this time Rosalie did smile. It was wane, but it was there.

With a sigh, Rosalie held her hand out. Alice put the envelope in her palm and stood, saying something about taking a shower before bedtime. Rosalie was grateful, recognizing that her friend was giving her space.

Wondering why she felt so uncertain and nervous about it, Rosalie slid her fingernail carefully under the flap. It was sealed - a silent request to Alice for privacy perhaps? Rosalie took a great deal of comfort knowing these words were only between the two of them.

_**Briar Rose~**_

_**It's days like these that I marvel at the Universe's impecable sense of timing. Of all the weeks we were together, that very day was the one that made me stop and question what were doing. Not to doubt - because there was no part of me that wanted to, or felt I should - but because I suddenly wondered what we were missing.**_

So now I find myself playing a game of what if. A few weeks ago, I had a chance to join a private practice. If I hadn't turned down the offer, you never would have known I knew that slime. He would have faded away from my life, like so many other unimportant people. How different would both of our lives be if I'd called in sick like you told me to?

Rose, you have to know that if I even had an inkling of who he was, the only relationship we'd have had was my fist in his face. That's on general principle alone. As someone who'd hurt you, well, I probably shouldn't commit that promise to paper.

You and I have never played games, so I won't wax romantic with you. Here it is - my last card on the table. It's not something I kept from you, it's something I would have told you if that day had gone any other way than how it had.

_**I love you. **_

_**~Edward **_

And there it was. Simple and clear, with no subtext to confuse or mistake. He'd said what he needed to say with no expectations, no begging. It was her choice then to decide what to do.

Rosalie closed her eyes, dropping the letter as her hand rose to her mouth. She pressed down hard, feeling tears well and fight their way past her tight eyelids.

Angrily wiping at her cheeks, Rosalie tried to get a grip on herself. Now, on top of all the fear and fury, she was confused.

Even if she wanted to consider all the new information he'd handed her, she couldn't. Not when he still worked with John.

And she had bigger things to consider - like how she was going to put her life together a second time.

**~0~ **

"You're sure?" Edward asked.

Across from him, Eleazar Thomas - his father's friend and private investigator - raised an eyebrow. "What do you take me for? I've been in this game a long time, Edward," he chuckled. He threw a folder in front of Edward with a satisfied smirk. "John Lambert is a real piece of work. In the five short days you've had me in your employ, I've caught him doing a number of things that will cost him his position, not the least of which is buying drinks for the 18 year old cheerleaders."

Edward shuddered, imagining just what John was up to with the barely legal girls. Not wanting to get himself worked up all over again, Edward decided not to look at the photos. "These will get him fired. I want something that'll put him behind bars."

"Like I said, it's only been five days, kid," Eleazar said patiently. "I'll keep at it, and if there's anything to dig up, it will be dug up. Until then - one copy to the Dean and another to the basketball team. If I'm not mistaken, some of the ones he's getting chummy with have boyfriends on the team."

"Out of a job and probably beat up pretty badly is a start," Edward muttered darkly.

Still, it made him extremely uncomfortable, knowing that John and Rosalie were in the same city. It was a long shot - Edward had never so much as spoken Rosalie's name to the other man - but he didn't want to take something as important as Rosalie's safety for granted by assuming John was ignorant to her existence.

Alice had been staying with Rosalie, but Edward knew she and Jasper were headed out tonight. He'd been trying to give her space, but he simply didn't like the idea of Rose being alone in the house until he could ensure that John would never have the opportunity to so much as stumble across her.

That was how he found himself parked across from Rosalie's house, dozing every so often. His eyelids were heavy, drooping as the night went on, until he heard a sharp rap on the window. His eyes flew open, and Edward found himself face to face with Rosalie. She was staring into his car window with her arms crossed and a scowl on her pretty face.

Sighing, Edward reluctantly put the window down. "I swear this isn't what it looks like," he offered quietly.

"I know what it isn't. So what is it?" she asked bluntly.

Swallowing hard, Edward considered his options. He ran the risk of insulting her. Not a lot of things irritated her worse than the implication she couldn't take care of herself. Then again, there weren't a lot of good reasons why he would be hanging around outside of her house. "I just... I needed to know you were safe."

She blinked and looked down, obviously debating with herself. She sighed and nodded toward her house slightly. "Come inside."

She walked away, leaving him staring after her. Quickly, because her moods were mercurial on a normal basis, Edward raised the window and got out of the car, following after her. Rosalie had already gotten inside, leaving the door open for him to follow.

She was on the couch, pressed into the farthest corner with her legs drawn up to her chest. His heart clenched, because normally, Rosalie was ten feet tall. Seeing her try to make herself smaller, less vulnerable, was physically painful to him.

"Rose..." he whispered, sitting on the end of the couch furthest away from her. He didn't know where to start.

But then she spoke, her voice trembling. "You were really going to tell me... that day?"

"We don't..." Edward tried to keep up with the conversation, not expecting her to bring up the letter he'd sent with Alice. "Rosalie, we don't have to talk about that."

"Just answer me."

"Yes... I was going to tell you. I was thinking about it all day, but when I got back to my office and saw what you'd left me..." He shrugged slightly. "I'm a lot of things, Rosalie, but you know me. You know I'll always tell you exactly how I feel."

"Even when it hurts my feelings," Rosalie said dryly.

Edward sucked in a quick breath. Taking a chance, he scooted a little bit closer toward her, guauging her reaction. She didn't look up, but she didn't protest either. "I'm not going to apologize for being a dick to you, because you know damn well you've been a bitch to me. And... if you weren't, if we weren't... uh... spiky, then this... we never would have happened. And I can't regret that."

She still didn't look up, but he could swear he saw her lips quirk. He scooted over again, just a little closer. "You know I'm not one to let anyone walk over me. Not even you. And I know you're the same way. It's one of the things I... love about you. But I've never tried to hurt you. I've never wanted to hurt you."

Rosalie said nothing, and Edward scooted over again. She was close enough now that he could reach out. Tentatively, he drew the pad of a single finger down her cheek, the motion tender and gentle. She was crying so softly he hadn't even realized it, and when she didn't tell him to get away and didn't flinch at his touch, he wiped away her tears. "I'm sorry," he said in a whisper.

Her breath shuddered, but she tilted her cheek against his hand.

"I'm sorry," he said again, scooting close enough that there was only a few inches of space between them.

He didn't really elaborate what he was sorry about. There was too much. He was sorry that he'd brought a monster back into her world; even if it wasn't his fault, he didn't like being the catalyst to her pain. He was sorry that the Johns and Royces of the world existed, making it difficult for people like Rosalie to trust. How much of her life had been warped? How many things would she have now if Royce and John hadn't happened to her?

But she wouldn't have him.

And Edward was sorry that he didn't want to undo the path that had brought them together. It was a selfish thought, and he couldn't help that it crossed his mind, but he was sorry about it all the same.

With his other hand, he cupped her other cheek, stroking softly. He let his hands drift down to where hers were clenched around her legs. Slowly, he worked his fingers under hers, loosening her hold, trying to show her that he could stand by her side and help keep her safe. It didn't mean she was weak - it just meant she was loved.

And when she released her hold on her legs, Rosalie leaned up against him. Her body was trembling, and he knew it must have been frightening, so he gathered her to him with light hands, pressing tiny, adoring kisses across her face.

He didn't push at all, made no move to kiss more than chastely and even those were small pecks across her nose and cheeks. He waited, keeping still as her hands rested first on his knees, then gripped his arms, then came up to his face. Her eyes finally met his, and he could see the fear and uncertainty, even a degree of anger, but beyond all that was an unfathomable gift.

Trust.

He knew now better than ever what it cost her to give her trust, so he looked back at her steadily, silently assuring that he wouldn't take it for granted.

Rosalie's eyes fluttered closed and she breathed in sharply. Then she closed the tiny distance between them, putting her lips to his.

**A/N: Oh, I see how it is. I tell y'all that I'm not putting this on a posting schedule and the characters won't stfu and let me get on with my regularly scheduled programing? WHAT. EVER.**

**Thank you for all of your encouragement. This is so far outside the box for me, and I appreciate all your kind words!**

_**jadedandboring loves lyricalkris. And thank you, Edrose, for your amazing favorite stories and feeding my roseward addiction. ahem.**_


	5. We All Have a Weakness

**Chapter 5: We All Have A Weakness**

**Dedication: To my girl, my jadedandboring. I love you. **

"_**We all have a weakness**__**  
><strong>__**But some of ours are easy to identify.**__**  
><strong>__**Look me in the eye**__**  
><strong>__**And ask for forgiveness;**__**  
><strong>__**We'll make a pact to never speak that word again**__**  
><strong>__**Yes you are my friend.**__**  
><strong>__**We all have something that digs at us,**__**  
><strong>__**At least we dig each other,"**_

_**~Dig, Incubs**_

All things considered, Rosalie was glad that she woke first in the early light of the morning. She and Edward were lying side by side, though she was tucked safely under the covers, and he was on top. She pursed her lips ruefully, realizing that his body was curled tightly in on itself. He was cold, she recognized. Quickly, she threw her half of the comforter over him, wrapping him up like a fluffy Edward taco.

Tucking her hands under her cheek, Rosalie simply watched him, studying his features and thinking hard about the last few days of her life.

Alice told her that after she'd slammed the door in his face, Edward had waited on her stoop until she and Jasper could get there. He'd edged his strong cold into full blown delirium just so he could make sure she was okay...even after she'd shoved a can of mace in his face.

Studying the fine lines of his face, Rosalie tried to fit her mind around the word love.

The last man she'd loved, the only man she'd loved - or thought she'd loved - was Royce. Of course, at the time, her only criteria for a desirable man was hot and not in high school.

But it was unfair to relate her concept of love at 17 to what it should be now, and it was ridiculously unfair to compare Edward to Royce.

She used to think about love in terms of movie montages: kisses set to music, dramatic dances in the rain, sweet lovemaking that was more like a dance set to sighs and moans.

Royce had destroyed all that, and because she wasn't the same person after what had happened to her, she was alone. Her friends had been children just like her; they didn't know how to deal with her tragedy and they didn't have to.

Rosalie had moved across the country to forget. She'd set her face into a near permanent scowl and the tone of her voice to a sarcastic cadence. Alice - her exact opposite - balanced her out slightly, tempering her moods so she didn't always swing from cold to downright insulting.

But then there was this man. All the tricks she used to send a man running seemed to have no effect on him. He'd smirked at her fits of temper, rolled his eyes at her snippy comments, and returned each of the barbs she'd shot at him with neat precision. He didn't put up with her bullshit. But he gave her the respect she'd deserved and earned, while simultaneously demanding she return the favor.

As a grown woman with far too much baggage, Rosalie could understand the value of a steady man with a steady heart. Maybe there was a difference between the passionate love of her school-girl fantasies, and being two passionate people in love.

Rosalie let her eyes drift along his stubble-covered cheek, taking the path she wanted to draw her fingers along. "I love you," she whispered into the silence of the dawn, trying on the words when he couldn't hear them. They seemed surprisingly appropriate... like they belonged floating in the air between them. Rosalie felt a smile worm its way from her heart to the edges of her lips.

Then, Edward stirred, his eyes blinking open. Rosalie froze, terrified that he'd heard her confession, until she saw that his eyes were unfocused and bleary. He smiled at her, the easy smile of a man still wrapped in pleasant dreams. His arm shot out, lazily draping over her waist before his eyelids drooped and he fell back asleep.

Breathing easy again, Rosalie snuggled closer to him and followed his lead, closing her eyes and letting sleep take her back to the land of dreams where everything was simpler.

**~0~**

For the last several nights, Rosalie had awoken in the throws of a nightmare. She could only be grateful that her flailing was relatively silent and hadn't alerted Alice on the nights she'd stayed over. Rosalie had woken herself in time to roll over, burying her sobs of terror deep into her pillows. She'd hoped – since Edward seemed to ward off the nightmares for the majority of the night that his continued presence would let her get through one sleep cycle without horror, but it seemed that just wasn't her luck.

"You're safe. I'm here, Rose. I'm not going to let anyone hurt you," Edward's voice murmured, slowly sinking through the muddled layers of confusion and fear. Rosalie opened her eyes, blinking as she tried to focus and see his face. She'd never been truly afraid of Edward, even for the brief period of time she could see him only as someone who would consort with the monster who'd hurt her. Furious and betrayed, yes, but fearful? No.

"Please hold me." She whispered her most desperate wish before she realized she'd spoken. Instantly, she was ashamed, and she rolled away from him, feeling pathetic as she tried to calm her sobs. But then she felt the bed dip, and he laid behind her, his body aligning along hers. His arm came over her, his hand finding hers as he held her tightly.

And Rosalie let go, letting her back melt against him as she quaked with the strength of her tears. Unlike several days before - when it felt like the violent intensity of her own emotions would tear her to pieces - Rosalie felt anchored to something infinitely more stable. With his arm wrapped around her, and his body bracing hers, she could finally believe that this storm - terrifying and tumultuous as it was - would pass.

Edward was beyond patient, holding her tightly and stroking her hair with his free hand. He didn't move until she'd calmed, and even then it was only to put enough space between them that he could rub her neck, gently massaging out the tension in her shoulders.

He was a good man, she realized, and when she tried to imagine going back to her life before he was in it, her heart ached. But at the same time, there were so many things she couldn't promise him, and he deserved to know them all up front.

"How often do you have nightmares?" Edward's soft voice interrupted her thoughts.

Automatically, her back stiffened and she wanted to snap at him that it was none of his business. Then she sighed. After all these years, it was difficult to think about letting someone see the part of her that could be broken…that had been broken. "Maybe a few times a year until recently," she admitted reluctantly. "It was easier before. I could pretend he was part of a nightmare. Now… knowing he's here…"

She couldn't complete her sentence, hating that she felt so vulnerable. The truth was that she wanted to run again. She hated that her home, the space she'd at least felt comfortable in, was now tainted. She liked Seattle and felt even more furious that the demons she'd struggled to leave in New York had followed her here.

But Edward seemed to understand without her having to say the words. "I'll be here, you know. I'm not going to let anyone hurt you."

His voice was so fervent. It was such a sweet gesture that Rosalie turned in his arms, curling herself closer to him. "So what? You'll be my watchdog until he dies?" she asked wryly.

He didn't answer at first and when she looked up, he was pursing his lips guiltily. Then he told her about the private investigator he'd hired, and how he hoped to find … something, anything that would get him sent away. It was likely Edward's actions had already cost him his job, and that was a good start.

"Rose…" he began quietly, looking so ashamed that her eyebrows furrowed. If he'd already confessed to hiring a P.I., she couldn't imagine what else would have him looking so damn guilty. "If I'd have known… I mean, that first time especially… it was so rough-"

She made an exasperated sound. "Edward, _I_ instigated that."

"But I should have-"

"Stop!" She glared at him and smacked his chest a little harder than necessary. She felt unreasonably shy, but she still wanted him to know. "I don't know that it could have happened any other way. If I had a chance to think about it, I would have backed out and… I'm really, really glad I didn't."

His expression gentled, and he cupped her cheek, pressing a feather-light kiss to her lips. With a sigh, she kissed him back. "Edward," she whispered against his mouth, her voice trembling, "I don't know if I can… I don't know how to…"

"Shhh," he murmured, kissing her reverently. "I'm not going anywhere. We can go as slow as you need. If you want me, I'm here."

**~0~**

Since they were rarely outside of each other's company except for work, Rosalie should not have been surprised to find Edward sitting in her living room when she returned home one day.

It had been nearly three months since she'd found him outside her house, and they were closer than ever. As he'd promised, he never pushed her, simply enjoying holding her and kissing her neck and lips. When he opened his arms to her, she automatically went to sit on his lap.

"What's wrong? What are you doing here so early? Why aren't you still at work?" she asked quietly, nuzzling his cheek with her nose.

With a heavy sigh, he backed up a little so he could look her in the eyes. His mouth was set in a hard line that made her stomach churn a little. "They arrested John Lambert today," he said, his voice sounding strangely remorseful.

Rosalie blinked at him, trying to match his tone to the news. Something wasn't adding up. "For what? When?"

He scowled, looking away from her. "Nothing nearly as heavy as I wanted to catch him on." He looked back at her, his eyes full of regret. "Tax evasion charges have been levied against him. Blue collar crime wasn't what I was going for." Leaning forward, he pressed his forehead to hers. "I'm sorry."

She chuffed. "Of course. You should have committed a murder and framed him. I prefer Royce, but I won't be picky."

Edward gave her a somewhat disparaging look. "I'm serious, Rosalie. This will send him away for a maximum of 5 years. That's not nearly as long as he deserves."

"You're right," Rosalie said softly. "Look at my face, Edward. I am... I don't know if happy is the right word... but profoundly relieved. Even if he gets out of jail tomorrow, at least I know where he is today." Her hand under his chin, she kissed him, coaxing his lips into a small smile.

She hopped up then, tugging on his hand. "I'll tell you something you can do for me."

"Anything," he said, his smile a little more sure now.

Wrapping her arms around his waist, she grinned. "Dinner's on you."

Chuckling, Edward led her out the door.

They got home just a little over an hour later, the mood between them considerably lighter than it had been in the months they'd been together. When they stumbled into the house, arms tangled around each other as they kissed, Rosalie felt an urge and hunger for Edward that she'd been ignoring as she worked out what it was she was doing with him.

She knew they could be good together physically, but hadn't wanted to breach that line in the new relationship they'd begun to develop until she knew she was capable of intimacy. Now, though, she felt almost silly. How many years had she avoided relationships, not trusting people? And then came Edward - who cared about her so much he would spend his time, money and energy finding even the barest amount of justice for her.

And really, what was she afraid of? Would risking a broken heart really hurt more than everything she'd already been through?

"Edward?" she asked, her voice reedy.

"Hmm?" he responded, distracted as his fingers traipsed up and down the length of her spine.

"Take me to bed," she said before she could change her mind. Ridiculously, her heart sped up, her blood rushing through her body and pulsing in her ears.

Edward backed up a step, tilting his head and looking at her. "You're ready to go to sleep?" he asked, confused.

"No."

His eyes widened and then darkened as he understood her implication. It was nice in a way, and she felt a pleased smile spread across her face, glad that she could turn him on.

Since he had permission, Rosalie expected that Edward would dive right in. Even when they weren't rough, sex between them had almost always fallen under the hard and fast category. Instead, Edward surprised her by taking his time.

With his hands on her waist, Edward walked her backward, never taking his lips off hers. Unsure of what he was doing, Rosalie followed in whatever dance Edward was leading her in. When his tongue brushed across her bottom lip, she obediently opened her mouth. She stepped backward when he stepped forward, giving herself over to the giddy pleasure of his slow seduction.

When he'd led her back to her room, pressing her back against the pillows and lying down beside her, Rosalie gave a light laugh. She drew the back of her hand over his cheek, looking up at him as he gazed adoringly down on her. "How can you simultaneously be the biggest asshole and the sweetest man on the planet?"

He chuckled, catching her hand and kissing her fingertips. "I'm not so sweet," he said softly. "I'm just not as tough as I make myself out to be, I suppose."

It was an apt description of her own personality. She wasn't as sweet as many wanted her to be, but nor was she as sour as she pretended. For instance, she liked this. A lot. She liked that, as his hands moved on her body, pushing her shirt up and her pants down, he only stopped kissing her long enough to pull the fabric over her head.

Reveling in the tender way his hands caressed her skin, it took Rosalie unforgivably long to realize that Edward was waiting for her. It was as if he was making a two way conversation between their bodies. He'd used his hands to talk, communicating with affectionate movements and touching her body with grace instead of need, as he exposed more of her to him. He was waiting for her to take part as a speaker in their silent conversation.

Moving at the pace he'd set, she let her hands work the buttons of his shirt, helping him shrug it off even as they continued to make out. It was nice... more than nice. Rosalie found she enjoyed very much taking the time to truly show how she felt about the man she'd welcomed into her bed.

No matter which way you sliced it, sex was an advanced language, a different way to communicate a message. The more Rosalie had sex with Edward, the more she saw that Royce and John's actions that night, so long ago, said absolutely nothing about her. It wasn't them telling her she was so worthless that they could use and abuse her body without a second thought. It was them finding power they'd lost somewhere else.

But sex with Edward, even when it hadn't been about love, was all about the emotion that existed between them. When their anger had become physical, it was a means to an end, proving that they were equals and well-matched. He infuriated her and intrigued her. She hadn't really known how to deal with that. Sex was just one of many ways it could have gone.

Now, though, was an entirely different story. The dynamic between them had shifted, becoming less showing off and more putting something physical to the emotion they'd found in each other. This was love - steady and true - and Rosalie felt it with every action.

When his hands slid up her spine, deftly undoing the clasps of her bra, it set her heart pounding. He finally released her lips, trailing kisses across her face, down the arch of her neck, across her collarbone and all around her full breasts before he took a nipple in his mouth. With his hands at the small of her back, holding her firmly against him, he swirled his tongue around her peak.

Rosalie sighed, letting her eyes slide closed and letting her thoughts fade away. There was nothing but his mouth on her, his hands strong at her back, and her fingers sliding through his hair. Little moans and tiny mewls tumbled out of her mouth, over her open lips, and she reached down, taking one of his hands and guiding it between them. Getting the idea quickly, Edward slipped his hand under the band of her panties, finding her clit and teasing her with gentle brushes. She groaned, her hips rising, tempting his fingers.

Intent on evening the playing field, Rosalie stroked Edward's cheek with the pad of one finger. She ran her finger around his mouth as he sucked and licked her tit. Then, as she'd hoped, he turned slightly, taking her finger in his mouth. Their eyes met, and Rosalie smiled at the playful, adoring intensity she saw in the green depths. She pumped one finger, and then two, in and out of his mouth. When she pulled back, he released her fingers with a wet smack, his grin sexy as he looked at her.

Tugging down his boxers with one hand, Rosalie circled the base of his hard length with her moist fingers. She smiled in satisfaction when his breath became staggered and his teeth bit down lightly on her shoulder.

"I want you," she murmured, her voice a pleading, whispered version of itself. Her hands were simultaneously working his boxers down his legs and pumping his cock at a steady rhythm. "Please. Now."

He kissed up her neck to her lips again, his hands pulling her panties down and his fingers sliding between her slick folds. "Here? Like this?" he asked, still teasing and playful.

She squeezed his cock hard enough that he gasped, his fingers stilling as he moaned his pleasure against her mouth. "All of you," she demanded.

They were still lying on their sides, so Edward moved his hand down her leg, pulling it gently and propping it up on his so she was spread wide for him. He took control of his cock from her, guiding the tip to her entrance. "Look at me," he said softly, and when she did, he smiled, cupping her cheek with his free hand. "I love you."

"I love you, too," she breathed, gasping lightly as he slid inside of her.

It was different and the same. He was familiar to her, and welcome. She'd missed this physical bond between them. She'd missed the pleasure his body could give hers. But it was better than before, because with their eyes on each other, there was an intensity that surrounded them, connecting them on more than just a physical level. It was surprising how that overwhelming atmosphere affected her body. Even though their position was shallow, as they moved with each other, Rosalie felt she could find her peak simply looking into his eyes. It was almost too much, and she felt like she wanted to look away, but at the same time it was so exhilarating, she wanted to stay in that moment forever.

Their lovemaking was simple. They moved in tandem, with their arms wrapped around each other and their lips together. When their need became too great, Edward rolled onto his back, bringing her with him. Rosalie gasped, feeling him move deeper inside of her, and she rocked her body in time with his thrusting hips.

Edward came first, pulsing inside of her as he gasped, his mouth wide open a half an inch from hers. The moment he had control of himself again he continued to thrust into her, his hands circling her clit to bring her to orgasm. Watching him come undone below her was its own form of pleasure. It didn't take long.

Neither of them spoke. There was no need. Their trembling bodies had done all the talking, and the silence between them was comfortable. Rosalie laid her head on his chest, listening to the sound of his heart thumping. His fingers trailed up and down her back.

When she felt him stirring again beneath her, Rosalie grinned. She turned her head, pressing kisses along his chest, on his chin and finally claiming his lips as he rolled them. His body pressed against hers, Edward entered her for the second time that evening, still in no rush - just enjoying the pleasure they found together.

When they were both spent and drowsy, curled together in a pile of pliant limbs and heated flesh, Rosalie sighed. "I wish it had been you," she mumbled, sleep closing in quickly.

His lips whispered across her mouth for a final kiss goodnight. "You wish what had been me?"

"When I was 17 and stupid. I wish it was you I found."

"Oh, sweetheart," he breathed, gathering her close to him. "I wish it had been me, too."

**~0~**

"Cullen, if you think you're going to get away with not wearing that cummerbund, you are sorely mistaken."

Edward scowled at Rosalie, and then shot a death glare at the detestable item he'd just discarded. "Rose, really. By the time she notices I don't have it on, Alice will be standing at the alter. You think she's going to care about anything besides the fact Jasper is standing there, looking all handsome and about to pledge his undying devotion to her?"

He watched her approach in the mirror, trying not to grin at the exasperated expression on her face. She picked up his cummerbund and wrapped it around his waist from behind. "Edward, I love you," she said sharply, cinching the damn thing around his waist, "so it would kind of suck if I had to kill you. If you mess up Alice's wedding, even by one small iota, I'm honor bound to strike you down. Buck up and take it like a man."

Grumbling, Edward turned, wrapping his arms around her. "You don't want to kill me."

"Only because I don't want you to die," she said sweetly. She kissed him once, and he loved the soft smile on her face. Rosalie's ferocity could be attractive, but he did enjoy the gentler side she reserved just for him. "I suppose I've grown accustomed to your face."

He snorted, carefully kissing the side of her head along her hairline. He knew from experience that if he mussed her hair after it had been 'done' there'd be hell to pay.

The day passed remarkably quickly, Edward spending most of it with his best friend. Jasper was nervous but glowing with happiness. He was babbling excitedly, talking about houses and backyards full of children. It made Edward laugh, seeing his friend so... what was the word he'd used... verklempt. It was clear that tiny Alice owned Jasper, heart, body and soul.

As he stood beside his friend, watching Jasper and Alice take their vows and join their futures, Edward's eyes flitted over to Rosalie. They shared adoring smiles.

Whether or not they would ever be where their friends were, Edward recognized that the woman standing across from him had irrevocably altered his life. However unlikely their tale had begun, they'd found, in each other, first love, and a true partnership. She was difficult, yes, but so was he, and Edward was smart enough to recognize that fact. He'd heard someone say once that no one wrote songs about the ones that were easy. It was nothing but the truth. The love he found in Rosalie was all the sweeter because it hadn't been easy for either of them.

Looking at her that day, Edward had to laugh.

When he'd walked into that club, doing a reluctant favor for his friend, he could never have imagined the gift he was getting in return.

**~Fin~**

**A/N: Thanks for coming on this little journey with me. It was…interesting to say the least. Much love to twitina who beta'ed for me despite not being a fan of the pairing. Thanks to Barburella who surprised me by ENJOYING this… and, of course, thank you to my lovely girl. Even if I was the kind of person who thought this fandom is too much drama – which I'm not – it would all be worth it because I met you. Mwah.**

**So sorry about not replying to reviews. It's been a crappy couple of weeks. Let me know what you thought and you will get a response. Promise.**


	6. Epilogue: White Wedding

**A/N: This... was not my idea. Well, I mean, this was in my head while I was writing, but it was jadedandboring who asked me to put it all down on "paper". If you don't want to hear anything about Bella and Emmett, I suggest you forget this exists and just leave the first five chapters as is.**

_**"It's a nice day to start again.  
>It's a nice day for a white wedding.<br>It's a nice day to start again"**_

_**~White Wedding, Billy Idol**_

"You've certainly made my job easier. Look at you! You're glowing."

Rosalie looked at Alice in the mirror, a pleased grin spreading over her face. "I'm happy," she said, her whisper somewhat awed.

After Royce and his friend had hurt her, it was hard to imagine she'd ever be here. But Alice was right, she was the epitome of the blushing, beautiful bride. Her long, blond hair fell down to her shoulders in gentle waves except where it wound around a circlet of pearls. The circlet dipped down to a single pearl at the center of her forehead just as she'd imagined when she was a little girl.

A knock at the door drew both women's attention away. "Ladies. It's about that time," Jasper said, grinning as he opened the door. He whistled, his eyes taking in Rosalie from head to toe. "You look beautiful, Rose," he murmured as he stepped to Alice's side.

Rosalie nodded her thanks and agreement, but her eyes were on the man who'd stepped quietly into the room behind Jasper. He looked back at her, his green eyes shining softly. He smiled as he stepped toward her. "Stunning," he said sincerely.

He held his hand out to her, and Rosalie smiled as she took it. Keeping his eyes on her, he brought her hand to his lips, kissing the back. "Are you ready?" he asked softly.

"As I'll ever be," she said nervously. "You look good, too, Edward."

"We'll meet you downstairs," Alice said, kissing her cheek before she disappeared out the door with Jasper.

Rosalie stood, checking her reflection in the mirror. She was flawless. Edward chuckled, helping pull the veil over her eyes.

"What are you laughing at?" Rose asked, perplexed.

"Us," Edward said, his voice musing. "How unlikely it is that we'd be here, like this, today."

Rosalie's lips quirked, and she nodded her agreement.

_Two years into their relationship, Rosalie couldn't remember how long it had been since they'd gone more than a few days between fights. Edward would get impatient with her when she didn't show up on time to some of the events he always had them going to. She liked nights out where he would dote on her or twirl her around the dance floor. She would get irritated when he would space out when she was talking. _

_And from there it would escalate until they were screaming at each other. Edward hated losing his temper with her, but Rosalie was a master at provoking him. _

_"I don't understand why you insist on being a bitch instead of talking about this like a reasonable human being," Edward bit out between clenched teeth. _

_She crossed her arms. "I've always been a bitch, Edward. Just like you've always been an asshole." She breathed deeply, trying to find an edge of calm. "So expecting something different is just... stupid, isn't it?"_

_Without letting him answer, she turned around and stalked away, locking him out of their bedroom. She ignored him as he knocked on the door and called her name, his voice contrite._

_He really did hate yelling at her._

_All that night and most of the next morning, Rosalie stewed. She couldn't deny things were bad between them. They still loved each other... they just seemed to be moving in different directions as of late. _

_It had been different when they still hung out with Jasper and Alice on most weekends. But lately, their friends had been occupied with their newborn daughter. Without their friends to provide a common ground, Rosalie and Edward were finding that they didn't have a lot of shared interests. _

_By lunchtime, Rosalie was ready to see Edward and talk about a plan. She could compromise if he could. They were worth it. _

_According to Edward's co-workers, she missed him by minutes, and he'd left his phone in his office. Needing to have this conversation sooner rather than later, Rosalie decided to pick up some lunch of her own and wait for him. She walked to a deli nearby where she'd had lunch with Edward several times. _

_There, tucked into a quiet corner, Rosalie was surprised to spot Edward having lunch with a woman... a young looking brunette woman with a shy but adoring smile. _

_Rosalie knew exactly who the girl was. Some months before, as Edward had told the story, he'd been jogging in the pre-work hours on the football field of the college. A fellow jogger had taken a tumble, and he'd carried her the short distance to his office so he could massage out any kinks. _

_Rosalie had heard Bella Swan's name come up many times in conversation. Looking at her from across the little restaurant, Rose could now see Bella was her polar opposite. Petite where she was statuesque, brown hair to her blond... and somewhere in the back of her mind, Rose remembered that Jasper had let slip that Edward had never dated a blond before. _

_He preferred brunettes. _

_But that didn't really bother her... not really. It took Rosalie quite a few minutes to identify the one thing that had her stomach churning and a sense of dread building in her gut. _

_In the years they'd been together, Rosalie had never seen him look so enraptured in what she was saying. He was utterly fascinated by their conversation, his body leaning toward Bella, and her toward him. They weren't toughing in any way. In fact, throughout the entire time she watched them, he didn't touch her once, but, bizarrely, their bodies moved in sync. _

_"You're in love with her," Rosalie accused when he returned home from work. _

_He was exasperated. "I don't know what you're talking about."_

_And after a few minutes, Rosalie could see he truly didn't. Edward may have been an asshole, but he was not unfaithful - not even in thought. His conscious mind hadn't processed the feelings he had for this other woman because he was in a committed relationship with Rose. But the more she pressed, the less he could deny that she was right: he was in love with Bella. _

He fought it tooth and nail, but Rosalie knew they were over then. Edward didn't want to be that guy - the guy who would throw away a good relationship to puppy dog after another woman. Even after Rosalie moved to the spare room, refusing to speak to him, he didn't give up. He did his best not to see Bella, even though it obviously killed him to ignore her.

Hurting both of them killed him.

In retrospect, Rosalie regretted that she made it harder on him. It felt like a slap in the face. Bella was younger, of course, and not as broken as she was. But Rosalie knew from experience that physical appearance and fucked up backgrounds meant little to Edward. But in the heat of the moment, she'd been desperately uncertain.

She'd torn Bella to pieces verbally: her tits were too small, she was too plain... Any perceived imperfection she could find, she exploited until Edward, silent and clenching his teeth, finally exploded at her. He yelled, shattering one glass then two against the opposite wall in his frustration, and though she used his aggression as an excuse to look like the wronged party, she knew in her heart of hearts it wasn't his fault. It wasn't her fault.

It had happened... just like Rosalie and Alice being in that club the same day Jasper and Edward were. Edward hadn't planned it. After everything he'd done to help her, logically, Rosalie knew that he didn't want to hurt her.

Alice and Jasper were waiting at the bottom of the stairs, outside the inner doors of the church. Alice glanced back and gave Rosalie a once over and grinned in satisfaction. "You're so ready for this."

Rosalie giggled. "I so am."

Alice leaned forward, whispering a few last minute instructions to the tiny flower girl and ring bearer. Rosalie smiled, thinking how precious the children looked. Today of all days, she indulged in a daydream of the future... of a little girl with her fine hair or his dimples. Sure, it would take a little extra effort, but Alice had already agreed to be a surrogate when they were ready.

Inside the church, the music started.

"It's time, it's time!" Alice said, giddy. She turned, thrusting an ornate, flowing bouquet into Rosalie's arms. "Emmett's waiting," she said with a grin.

_A few weeks after she'd arrived and Alice and Jasper's door crying, Alice grew tired of her moping. She dragged her friend out to the club... the same club where they'd met Jasper and Edward in the first place._

_Alice hadn't done it on purpose. She'd honestly forgotten how they met the boys. She said it was as if she couldn't remember her life before she knew Jasper._

But Rosalie forgave Alice because that was also where she met Emmett.

Emmett was exactly what she needed right then. He was flirtatious and good looking. His dimpled smile made Rosalie weak in the knees despite everything she was currently going through. When she snarked at him, bringing out her bitchiness in full force, his grin had only gotten wider.

The sex was amazing, letting Rosalie lay to rest her fears that she couldn't be with anyone but Edward. Emmett made her feel beautiful again.

It had been around seven months since their breakup when Rosalie heard the news; Edward and Bella had eloped.

The story, as Rosalie now knew it, was that Edward had continued to ignore Bella for more than three months. But then fate intervened. Bella stumbled, about to fall out into the busy street when Edward caught her. They'd begun talking again and then...

It stung. Rosalie and Edward had been together for two years without speaking about marriage much more than a casual mention here and there. Edward and Bella's romance could only be categorized as whirlwind.

Again, retrospect colored the situation differently. From where she was now, Rosalie had to laugh. She knew Edward inside and out. He was a steady, logical man. This girl, for better or worse, had turned his entire life upside down. Rosalie had had occasion since then to spend time with the couple. She'd never known Edward to act as goofy and downright giddy as he did when he was with Bella.

But when she first heard the news, Rosalie was quietly devastated. She put on a brave face and shrugged nonchalantly when she was in front of Alice and Jasper, but privately she'd fallen apart.

Needing to feel beautiful, she called Emmett. He was there for her, as he was always there for her, and lying nude with him afterward, Rosalie had finally confessed what was on her mind.

And then he'd startled the hell out of her by proposing.

_"But this is... this is just a rebound, isn't it? Fuck buddies? That's what we said. You never said you were interested," she said, completely blown away._

_Emmett laughed. "Rose... a fuck buddy you just call when you need to get down and dirty. We do that, yeah but..." He looked thoughtful. "When you heard about Edward, did you tell your best friend you were angry or did you call me?"_

_"I called you," Rosalie admitted slowly._

_"You do that, you know. A lot. And we've been out before without sex entering into it. I mean," he grinned lasciviously at her, "don't get me wrong. I like when sex enters into it. But that's not all we are."_

_"I thought...maybe, we're becoming friends," she hedged carefully. _

_Emmett looked down, and twined their fingers together. "We are friends. And if you want to do friends first, and then maybe think about dating, I can do that. But before we talk about that, I have a confession to make._

_"I was there at the club... you know, the day you met Edward. I was sitting close enough that I could hear your conversation," he said, his lips quirking up in amusement._

_"What?"_

_"It was coincidence. I was there with my girlfriend at the time... Kate," Emmett rolled his eyes. "I was ... instantly uh... enamored, I guess is a good word for it."_

_Rosalie snorted. "Enamored," she repeated to herself. Emmett hadn't ever used a word like that. Even though she was struggling to believe it - Emmett was so often joking and teasing - she couldn't help but think that Emmett was being serious. _

_"Yeah..." He smiled wistfully. "But I was with Kate, and this other guy obviously had first dibs, so to speak. So I tried to forget. But the thing is, Rose... I never forgot._

_"And then, there you were again. You were free, and I was free." He shrugged. "And I've been going with the flow."_

Things happened quickly then. By the end of the night, Rosalie said yes. It was the craziest, most impulsive thing she'd ever done, but somehow, it felt right.

For the last three weeks, she and Alice had been putting together a fairy tale wedding on the go. Between the two of them, they'd managed to get everything together.

Until it came time for Rosalie to decide who got to walk her down the aisle.

It took many sleepless nights, working through her insecurities and her anger inside her own head, but at the end of the day, Rosalie was well aware of who'd been at her side through some pretty bad moments in her life. It wasn't her parents, that was for sure. She was still estranged from the parents who had desperately wanted to sweep her rape and its long reaching repercussions under the carpet.

But Edward had always been patient with her. He'd helped her through each and every issue that arose from the time they knew each other to the time she sent him packing. Without him, Emmett wouldn't have had a chance to be this close to her. She would have pushed him away, because Emmett didn't have the patience that Edward did.

That Edward had helped her pick up the pieces of her broken life didn't mean that they were destined to be together forever. In actuality, standing on her own two feet, unbroken, she and Edward didn't have much to offer each other as life partners. They had nothing in common except a love for each other that made them want to protect one another from anyone who would hurt the other.

That their romantic relationship hadn't worked out didn't have to diminish what he'd done for her, and so there was only one person Rosalie wanted to walk her down the aisle.

_"Is it strange that I'm asking this?" she asked him after he said yes. _

_"Sounds strange but..." He smirked. "It doesn't feel wrong."_

_She smiled back at him, relief closing over an old wound in her heart. "We hurt each other," she whispered. "A lot." _

_He pulled her into his arms, into a protective, encompassing hug. "That's what you do to people you love. That's what makes love so powerful and frightening. If you didn't care about someone so much, they couldn't hurt you like that."_

That was a little over a week ago. Now, here they were, arm in arm as he walked her to the tempo of the music... to the awe-struck man waiting for her at the end of the aisle.

When they got there, Edward stopped, once again pulling one of her hands up to his lips to kiss her.

"Thank you," she whispered, the simple words meaning much more than she could ever say.

His eyes shone and he winked at her, then he put her hand in Emmett's. She was home.

~0~

For the traditional Father/Daughter dance, Edward once again filled the role of the most important male in her life - other than her new husband, of course. Dancing with him had always been effortless.

As they twirled onto the dance floor, a woman's yelp of surprise drew Rosalie's attention back toward her husband. She smiled fondly, watching as Emmett dangled Bella above the ground as he danced them around in a graceless circle. Edward's arms tensed around her, and Rosalie looked back to see her former lover watching the other dancing couple with concern. His step faltered, but he seemed to relax when Bella started giggling.

_So overprotective_, Rosalie remembered.

Sometimes it still bothered her that Emmett had taken to Bella so easily. It would have been so much easier on her if the girl was difficult to like. Emmett had put it in perspective when she groused to him one day. He and Bella were destined to get along for the very same reason: they had to love anyone who kept their significant other away from their good-looking ex.

Edward, a little reluctantly, looked back at Rosalie. She didn't take it personally. She knew, when Edward was committed, he only had eyes for one woman.

Grudgingly, she admitted, "She's stunning today."

The way Edward's eyes lit up showed how much he agreed with that sentiment. But he managed to temper his reaction. "No one is looking at Bella today."

"No one but you," she teased, and then laughed as Edward blushed. "She's good for you, if I haven't said it before. I can see she makes you happy in a way no one else could." She smiled easily, glancing adoringly at her husband over Edward's shoulder. "I understand that now."

"Well," Edward began slowly. He rolled his eyes. "Emmett can take care of you. Not that you need to be taken care of," he said quickly.

Rosalie just shook her head. "I know what you're trying to say. Don't worry." She sighed happily. "I don't think anything could upset me today."

They danced in amiable silence for another few minutes. Rosalie watched Emmett with Bella until her husband set the other woman down. He offered her a flute of champagne that Bella waved away with a smile and a blush. Rosalie furrowed her eyebrows, processing little bits of information.

Bella wasn't just stunning... she was glowing.

Gasping, Rosalie smacked Edward on the shoulder. "You dog!" she admonished, giggling.

Edward's eyes were wide. "What?"

"You knocked her up, didn't you?" She laughed. "Leave it to you, Edward. You knocked her up on your honeymoon, I'll bet."

Edward's eyes widened. His mouth quirked up and down comically, like he was torn between denying it or shouting it from the rooftops. Finally, a brilliant grin overtook his face. "I knocked her up before the honeymoon," he boasted, obviously overflowing with pride.

"Wow. You're going to be a daddy," she said, surprised to find she was genuinely happy for this man... her ex... her friend.

"Wow," Edward agreed.

A year ago they'd been together - two whole people with missing pieces they didn't realize were there. Edward would always be an important person in her life, and Rosalie knew she would never be anything but glad they'd met. Now - both of their hearts finding their perfect others - they were left to enjoy their relationship as it should have been. They were friends. They were family.

And all was right with the world.

**A/N: I feel better. I can't tell you how much I giggled. Here I wrote Roseward for the girl - and believe me when I say they are NOT a pairing I can get behind under many circumstances - and then she begs me for a future take... an EDWARD/BELLA future take. **

**Well, how can I deny her such a thing?**

**Thank you to my girl jadedandoring for being both inspiration and beta. **


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